


All You Need is Love, Music, and a Cat

by funidontlikeyoueither



Category: Glee
Genre: Cheating, Don’t copy to another site, F/F, F/M, Gay Bashing, M/M, Not Blaine or Klaine Friendly, Not Rachel Friendly, PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:40:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23602474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/funidontlikeyoueither/pseuds/funidontlikeyoueither
Summary: After Kurt gets bashed, his life begins to go downhill. At least he can always count on his boyfriend, Blaine Anderson, and his best friend, Rachel Berry, to make things better. But what if he can’t? And instead, a gorgeous, steampunk, glitter rock vampire catches his eye.[EDITED 18/02/2021]
Relationships: Adam Crawford/Kurt Hummel, Blaine Anderson/Kurt Hummel, Elliott "Starchild" Gilbert/Kurt Hummel
Comments: 23
Kudos: 76





	1. Porcelain

**Author's Note:**

  * For [eridixm](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eridixm/gifts).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW- canon gay bashing

There he was again; Blaine Anderson, singing at the Spotlight Diner, making a show of himself and entertaining the customers. It wasn’t a surprise; the Spotlight Diner was a place where the workers sang and Blaine _loved_ singing. At least, it wouldn’t have been a surprise, but Blaine didn’t work there.

It was starting to agitate Kurt just how often Blaine was at the diner. Before Blaine had moved to New York, the diner was the place that Kurt could go to relax and just sing in peace. Plus, the generous tips were quite the bonus. But now? Blaine was always up on stage, stealing the spotlight. 

“Hey, Blaine, can you stop singing, please? I have a request,” Kurt asked his fiancé, trying his best to not make the customer who had requested him wait too long. 

“You’re kidding, right? The audience is loving me; it can wait,” Blaine replied, rolling his eyes as if Kurt’s job was a joke.

Something snapped inside of Kurt then. He wasn’t sure if it was the fact that Blaine was being so obnoxious, or if it was that he hadn’t had a minute to himself since his fiancé had moved in. Or maybe it was seeing a customer put $20 in the tip jar on top of the piano that should be going to _him_. Whatever it was, it made Kurt grab Blaine’s wrist and hiss at him to meet him in the back room.

* * *

After what felt like an eternity, Blaine finally stumbled his way into the freezing room that was infamously known for workplace hookups. The annoyed look on Kurt’s face told Blaine that that wasn’t why they were there.

“What’s your problem?” Blaine demanded. He figured that if he appeared to be in a bad mood then Kurt would go easy on him.

“This is my job!” Kurt snapped. “I don’t know where this selfish, careless, male Rachel Berry came from, but he is not the man I knew when I got engaged to him. This place isn’t your stage, Blaine; you can’t sing whenever you feel like it. If you want to sing so bad, either get a job here or find somewhere else.”

To say Blaine was shocked was an understatement. Was his fiancé really telling him off? Last time he checked, Kurt was an insecure high-schooler going to _Blaine_ for advice on how to deal with a bully. Heck, Kurt even apologised to Blaine after the Scandals incident. Where did _that_ Kurt go?

“I knew it. You’re jealous of me,” Blaine shot back. If he couldn’t conjure up a reasonable argument to say, he figured he would just attack Kurt personally. 

“I’m sorry?” Kurt said, tilting his head to the side, sounding as if he was holding back a laugh.

“You heard me. Ever since we met, I’ve beaten you. Competition solos. Tony. Senior class president. I got into NYADA on my first attempt. I was even the one to _cheat_ on _you_! And now I’m the centre of attention at your workplace. I get it, Kurt, if I was you I would be jealous of me too. After all, you’re nothing more than an insecure, bullied, background singer. A _Prom Queen_.” Blaine waited impatiently for Kurt’s response.

There wasn’t one.

Instead, Kurt slowly pulled the ring off his finger, walked over to Blaine, and shoved it into his hand. 

“Wait!” Blaine gasped as he realised what the gesture meant.

“Oh, no, I get it,” Kurt crossed his arms as he glared at Blaine, “why would you want to marry a Prom Queen?” He turned on his heel and stalked out of the room.

As soon as Kurt went back into the dining room, his eyes were attacked with bright lights and he was overwhelmed with the layers of people’s conversations. The reality of what had just happened hit him and tears began to form in the corners of his eyes. Kurt gripped onto the end of the counter for support as he felt his legs grow heavier and sighed in relief when his boss, Gunther, came over to him. 

“Kurt, what the hell is going on?” Gunther demanded. He turned around to smile at customers so he would seem kinder.

“I’m sorry, I’m just really overwhelmed right now. Can I take an intermission?” Kurt cringed at his own words, realising how stupid he sounded.

“You know what? Just take the rest of the day off. I can’t handle you McKinley kids.” Gunther facepalmed, making Kurt feel worse. No wonder Gunther felt that way; Rachel hadn’t been going into work since she got her big break at _Funny Girl_ and Santana had mysteriously disappeared a few weeks ago. 

Kurt mumbled a quick apology and made his way towards the door. He paused when he saw the man who asked him to sing. “Hey, um, I’m sorry but I have to go home,” he said. “But if you come back tomorrow I’ll sing. For free.”

The man chuckled sympathetically and told him not to worry about it.

* * *

As soon as Kurt opened the front door of the diner, he wished he had brought a jacket. The cold air hit him like a ton of bricks, which led to him believing that his day couldn’t get any worse. 

That was until he heard the cry for help. 

“ _Shut the hell up!_ ” a loud, deep voice yelled on top of the screaming. It silenced the victim.

Two other sets of voices called the sufferer a slur which made Kurt feel rage throughout his entire body. He finally understood how his dad felt when Finn had said the word.

Kurt ran towards the scene. “Hey! Get off of him!”

He could see clearly now; three men were beating up an innocent teenager in an alley. 

“Oh, look, another one,” one of the guys sneered. While he was distracted, Kurt pushed the guy over, freeing the victim.

“What is wrong with you?!” Kurt screamed. 

The kid ran away; it was just Kurt and the three bashers.

One of the men went to punch Kurt but he blocked the attack. However, the other two men pushed Kurt onto the floor. 

“Hey!” Kurt yelled, but he was quickly silenced when he was hit over the head with a brick. He was hit another two more times until he heard a car engine start.

“Get in!” Kurt heard someone yell. The car drove away, leaving him abandoned, bleeding onto the concrete.

* * *

“Has he woken up?” asked Sam as he paced back and forth in the waiting room.

“I don’t think so,” Rachel mumbled, trying to stop her tears from falling. “The doctors haven’t told me anything new.”

“When’s Artie going to get here?” 

“Mercedes is bringing him; they struggled to get a taxi that would take him. Relax, Sam.”

“But, like, shouldn’t Blaine be here by now?” Sam wondered aloud, realising how disorganised everything was.

“He’s not coming.”

Sam gave her a questioning glance and she explained that Blaine had told her that he and Kurt had gotten in a huge fight so Kurt wouldn’t want him there,

Finally, Mercedes wheeled Artie into the waiting room and they were immediately caught up on everything that had happened. 

“So, Kurt was protecting someone else,” Mercedes said. “Typical. My man needs to start looking out for himself.”

* * *

The doctor finally came into the waiting room. “Kurt Hummel?” he asked, preparing himself to fill the small party in on Kurt’s condition.

Sam simply nodded in acknowledgement.

“He has a hairline fracture above his right eye socket, some other cuts and bruising. He’s alive, and he will be okay. He’s sleeping now from the morphine, but you can see him.”

Rachel thanked the doctor and led the others into Kurt’s room.

The gang were silent for a long time.

Sam wanted to punch a wall. 

Rachel wanted to cry. 

Artie wanted to take all of Kurt’s pain. 

Mercedes wanted him to wake up.

To say that Kurt looked damaged was an understatement. 

His lip was busted; his knuckles were all slit open. He had cuts all over his cheeks, forehead and nose. His neck was covered in bruises. But the worst was his eye. Deep, purple bruising surrounded his eyelid, making it incredibly swollen. Rachel could only imagine how painful it would be for him to open his eyes. 

At least she hoped he would open them.

Sam was the first one to speak. He attempted a joke about Kurt being on painkillers but it received no laughter. 

Silence followed for a few minutes until Artie noticed that Kurt’s engagement ring was missing. He vocalised his discovery but Mercedes said it was probably either lost in the alley or the doctors removed it because of the damage. 

“No, I can feel there’s something more going on,” Sam retorted. He slammed his hand on the table.

“Sam, go outside and take a minute,” Mercedes ordered, checking on Kurt briefly to make sure he hadn’t been disturbed. “Calm down.”

“Don’t tell me to calm down Mercedes! How could someone do this to Kurt? What did he ever do to deserve this, huh? He’s supposed to be safe here, and look at him. He could’ve died and his ‘fiancé’ isn’t even here, so don’t tell me to calm down. And don’t you dare tell me nothing is going on between them,” Sam yelled.

“Go outside, Sam. Now.”

A tear slid down Sam’s cheek and he tried to hold back a sob.

Mercedes sighed and embraced him. “He’s going to be okay, Sam,” she whispered softly.

“Um, guys.” Artie tried to get his friends’ attention. He motioned to Kurt’s eyelids flickering.

Sam rushed over to Kurt’s side. “Hey, dude. Are you okay?”

“Mhm,” Kurt mumbled, opening his eyes slightly.

“It’s okay,” Sam murmured.

“Wh- Where am I?”

“Where are you? You’re at the hospital, Kurt,” Artie answered, trying to understand Kurt’s speech. “You were hurt badly.”

“H- How?”

No one answered, trying to keep Kurt in the dark of what had happened for as long as they could. Sam traced the scarring along Kurt’s face as his friend fell back asleep.

* * *

“ _Is this Mr Anderson?_ ”

“Yes, who’s this?” Blaine asked the caller. He tried not to roll his eyes when he heard the response.

“ _Doctor Stander, I’m calling you about Kurt Hummel_ ,” the doctor replied.

“I’ve already said I don’t want to see him.”

“ _He’s woken up but he seems to be having trouble with his memory of the past few days. We need you to come down and inform us of what happened before the attack. Thank you._ ”

Blaine smirked. If he was lucky, maybe Kurt wouldn’t remember their break up.

* * *

After giving his side of the story to the doctors (leaving out the fact that he insulted Kurt and their break up) Blaine was told that Kurt wanted to see him. 

As he opened the door, Blaine put on a fake smile and looked Kurt in the eyes. He gasped. “Kurt, oh my God. Are you okay?” he asked upon seeing his fiancé’s condition. 

“Hey, handsome,” Kurt mumbled. He reached out to touch Blaine’s hand but struggled to move them far. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Don’t move. Here,” Blaine said. He gently grabbed Kurt’s hands. “Are you comfortable?”

Kurt nodded and gave a soft, genuine smile. 

“Why did you want to see me?” Blaine asked, preparing himself. So far Kurt’s actions seemed loving, but what if it was an act? 

“You’re my fian- fian… I love you.” As Kurt stumbled on his words, his voice grew quiet.

“I love you too,” Blaine replied, “and I’m not leaving you.” He stroked Kurt’s scarred hands.

* * *

As Blaine made his way to the hospital exit, one of the nurses gave him Kurt’s phone to take care of since Kurt couldn’t use it himself. 

While walking to the subway, Blaine entertained himself by looking through the phone. He was calm until he saw a bunch of texts from _Elliott_. Blaine scoffed as he read through them. 

“It’s so obvious he’s trying to steal Kurt,” he muttered. “‘Hey your new tattoo is so cool. Next time we should get one together!’ God, why don’t you just sleep with him already.” One by one, Blaine deleted the texts.

After blocking the number, he looked through Elliott’s contact number to get the address. He was going to make sure Elliott stayed away from Kurt for good.

* * *

After Blaine found the correct apartment, he pounded on the door loud enough for the entire building to be disturbed. 

“Who is it?” a gentle voice asked, which Blaine assumed was Elliott’s.

“It’s Blaine!” he yelled back, praying that Elliott knew who he was.

The chain behind the door was released, and the door was slowly opened to reveal Elliott. 

Blaine was taken aback. Elliott’s hair was gel-free yet still flawless, and his muscular arms were covered in meaningful tattoos. Blaine had never felt so unattractive. 

In order to assert dominance, Blaine pushed past Elliott and dramatically turned on his heels to face his enemy. 

“We need to talk,” Blaine stated. Elliott waved his hand to gesture for Blaine to continue. “Stop trying to steal Kurt from me, Starchild Gilbert. He’s mine and not yours. Just back off; he loves me, not you.”

Elliott looked completely unfazed and responded by saying, “Firstly, Kurt isn’t yours. He’s a person, not a prop in your fantasy musical life. You don’t own him. Secondly, I’m not trying to take him from you. Yes, I find him attractive, but we’re just bandmates and friends. So, chill out, Nighthawk.” Elliott rolled his eyes as he recalled Kurt telling him about Blaine’s superhero alter-ego.

Seriously, Kurt could do so much better than that grease stain.

“Stop spending time with him or I’ll-”

Elliott chuckled. “I’m sure you’ll see yourself out,” Elliott said and pointed to the door behind him while walking past Blaine.

* * *

“Are you sure you don’t want to find another apartment? Maybe one with fewer stairs to walk up?” Rachel asked Kurt as she helped him reach their shared apartment.

“I’m sure,” Kurt croaked out. “I’m trying to get back- back to normal.”

Rachel had a heavy feeling in her chest as she held Kurt’s hand lightly. He still hadn’t recovered fully but he was more than determined to go back home. 

“When are you going back to NYADA?” Rachel asked in an attempt to change the subject.

“Next week if Madame Tibideaux lets me,” Kurt replied. “I still need to call her but I can’t find my phone.”

“Mm.” Rachel dug into her pocket to find the key to her apartment as they reached their floor. “Okay, let me know if you need _anything_. I’m going to my room to call Finn, alright?” She pulled back the separation curtain to go to her ‘room.’

Kurt made a noise in acknowledgement and sat down to rest.

* * *

Kurt wasn’t sure when he fell asleep, or when exactly Rachel left the apartment, but he woke up to the sound of gentle knocking on his door. 

“ _Kurt, it’s Blaine, can you let me in?_ ” the voice of the knocker requested.

“Hang o- on.” Kurt whimpered as he put too much pressure on his hands in an attempt to stand up.

A few minutes later, Kurt made it to the door, but it took another minute for Kurt to remove the chain. Eventually, Kurt managed to open the door to reveal his fiancé.

“Hey!” Blaine chirped and embraced Kurt.

“Hi,” Kurt said. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, I’m on my way to NYADA but first I had to give you back your phone.” Blaine handed Kurt his phone. “A nurse gave me it.”

Kurt thanked him and wished him good luck at NYADA.

“Oh, I’ll need it. I have my mid-winter critique performance today.”

“Have I done mine?”

“Uh, no. Don’t worry, Madame Tibideaux will probably let you do it at a later date.”

“Okay, I’ll see you later.” Kurt gave Blaine a grin and closed the door.

* * *

“Hello, I’m Blaine Anderson and I’ll be singing _Not While I’m Around_ ,” Blaine informed the audience and Madame Tibideaux.

As he was singing, he couldn’t help but think of Elliott. Then, his mind shifted to Elliott and Kurt’s relationship and how close they were despite Kurt being engaged. Then he thought about the night before, how the gang had gotten to talking about Kurt and Blaine’s last breakup. It had made Blaine furious how his so-called ‘friends’ would still take Kurt’s side in the cheating. 

After he finished the final note, he waited for the roaring sound of applause to fill the room. Instead, he heard a few scattered claps and an awkward cough. 

“Mr Anderson,” Madame Tibideaux said, “how can you possibly expect to be on Broadway one day when you have less emotion than the chair you’re sitting on?”

“What the- Whatever do you mean?” asked Blaine.

“The song is supposed to be moving and make the audience feel emotional. You looked uncomfortable and angry throughout the whole song. I’m flunking you.” She waved Blaine off of the stage.

Blaine rolled his eyes and flipped her off behind her back.

* * *

It ended up being 2 weeks until Kurt was allowed back at NYADA. After only being out on a few walks with Sam, it was a huge relief to be back at school. 

His day was going steady; he heard whispers in the hall, some people called him a hero, others called him weak. 

Blaine, on the other hand, was beginning to feel insecure about all of the attention his fiancé was getting. 

In Stage Weaponry Class, Blaine couldn’t help but notice how some of the boys were looking at Kurt’s abs a little too closely. 

“Okay, everybody, partner up,” the instructor ordered the class.

Kurt apprehensively looked around as one of the boys in his class, Jamie, came up to him and asked him to be his partner.

“Yeah, no. I’m pretty sure Kurt would rather be with his _fiancé_ ,” Blaine answered for Kurt, putting a protective arm around him.

Kurt gave Jamie an apologetic smile and said he’d work with him next time. 

Kurt and Blaine were called up to fence and Blaine decided to take it as an opportunity to be stronger than Kurt. Blaine lunged towards Kurt several times and Kurt managed to block each strike. After a couple more blocked attacks, Kurt managed to hit Blaine on his back, which resulted in a yelp of pain. Blaine heard a comment from one of the girls saying that despite Kurt being injured, he was still beating Blaine. Blaine became overcome with feelings of jealousy and his attacks became constant and aimless; he was just determined to hit Kurt. Finally, he hit a blow on Kurt’s arm, which made Kurt cry out in pain.

“What the hell, man? He just came out of the hospital!” a student, Logan, yelled as he went to Kurt’s side.

“Kurt, are you okay?” the instructor asked, glaring at Blaine.

“Ye- Yeah,” Kurt mumbled, steadying himself.

“Blaine, I’ll see you after class. Kurt, take a break, okay?”

“What?” Blaine didn’t understand what all the fuss was about, it wasn’t as if he had _hurt_ Kurt. Not getting a response, Blaine just sighed and sat down next to Kurt. “Are you actually okay?” he whispered, putting a hand on Kurt’s leg.

Kurt ignored him, staring down at his feet and brushing Blaine’s hand away.

“Fine, be like that,” Blaine snapped, making a mental note to be distant towards Kurt later.

* * *

“What was your problem back there?” Kurt asked Blaine after he left the instructors office.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“You hurt me. On purpose.”

“Yeah, well, you’ll be happy to know that I’m suspended for a week.” Blaine turned around on his heel to face Kurt. “So, you can ‘work’ with all the cute guys you want,” he added, not caring that Kurt looked like he was on the verge of tears.

“I don’t know what’s going on with you, but you’re not acting like the guy I’m engaged to.”

Those words gave Blaine a flashback to the night they ‘broke up’, and Blaine realised that if he was going to stop Kurt from leaving him, he would have to guilt him. “I’m sorry… It’s just that ever since your accident, people have been seeing you as a sexual object. I’m worried you’ll leave me because I’m so much weaker than you.”

Kurt embraced Blaine. “I won’t leave you.”

Blaine didn’t respond.

“I’ll be right back,” Kurt said. “I need to go to the bathroom; I’ll meet you at the apartment.” He released himself from Blaine’s grip.

Just as he was about to walk away, Blaine pulled him back and kissed him harshly. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Kurt said and Blaine finally let him go.

* * *

After Kurt finished in the bathroom, he made his way back down the main stairs towards the exit. 

“Crap,” he mumbled as he rummaged through his bag to find his card to unlock the door.

“Here,” a smooth voice said. The owner of the voice opened it for him.

“Thanks- Elliott!” Kurt threw his arms around his friend. “It’s so good to see you. Wait, what are you doing here?”

“I came to see you. I need to talk to you. But first,” Elliott examined Kurt’s face, “you need to tell me what happened to you.”

“Okay, let’s go to Spotlight. I just need to tell Blaine-”

“Actually, I wouldn’t tell him. He’s the reason I need to talk to you.”

“Oh,” Kurt replied and followed Elliott out of the building. “How did you know I was here?”

“I tried to call you a few times, but it wouldn’t go through. Then I ran into Rachel yesterday and she told me you are coming back today. So, here I am.”

They sat down in the diner and Kurt explained everything to Elliott. Hearing about Kurt’s bashing made Elliott contemplate whether or not he should inform Kurt of Blaine’s possessive behaviour. However, Kurt then told him about the fencing incident, which ultimately made the decision for Elliott that Kurt would be much safer without Blaine.

“So, um. You wanted to talk about Blaine?” Kurt approached the subject gingerly.

“Last week, Blaine came to my apartment. He told me that I should stop trying to get with you and that you’re _his_. I told him that he doesn’t own you. And he tried to threaten me,” Elliott explained gently, constantly watching Kurt’s face for any signs of panic or hysteria.

“I am _so_ sorry,” Kurt mumbled.

“Hey... hey. Look at me,” he met Kurt’s eyes and gave him a comforting smile, “it’s not your fault. It was kinda funny. The whole time he looked all constipated and uncomfortable.” 

Kurt chuckled and smiled back at Elliott.

“So, what are you gonna do about your psycho fiancé?” Elliott prayed that Kurt would leave him. 

“I’m not sure. He told me today he’s insecure about guys going after me, so it might have something to do with that. I’ll have to speak to him... but I might leave him. I’m not sure. I mean, we’ve been together for years, and I don’t want to end it with him over you.” Kurt gasped a little, realising what he had said, and stared into Elliott’s hurt eyes.

“I get it. You two are soulmates, and I can’t ruin that. I’ll see you around Kurt.” Elliott rose from his seat and walked out the door, leaving Kurt alone.


	2. How to be a Heartbreaker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurt finally confronts Blaine about his possessive behaviour and learns the truth about what really happened the night he got bashed. Elliott and Kurt begin to get closer as Kurt needs comforting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW- Domestic abuse

Turning his keys in the lock of his door, Kurt took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself for what was coming. 

He checked his phone on the subway ride home and saw that Elliott’s number was blocked. No wonder Elliott wasn’t able to reach him. 

Kurt eventually conquered up the confidence to push the door open and felt immediately light-headed at the sight of his fiancé. 

"Hey, gorgeous. Did you get stuck in the bathroom? You’ve been gone ages." Blaine chuckled but his smile faded quickly when he saw the expression on Kurt’s face.

"Oh, cut the crap, Blaine. I ran into Elliott. Guess what? He’s been trying to reach me for _days_. His number was blocked on my phone. And, coincidentally, _you_ had my phone."

"Okay, calm down, please. I blocked Elliott’s number because... I was looking out for you, babe," Blaine explained calmly, not looking directly into Kurt’s intense eyes. 

"Looking out for me, huh? Is that why you also tried to threaten Elliott to make sure he wouldn’t talk to me again? Or was that just your possessive, manipulative personality? I’m not yours, Blaine. You don’t own me, I own myself. And I don’t need you to live my life," Kurt shouted, his head feeling like it was going to explode. 

"I’m sorry, I’m just scared." Blaine looked at Kurt with regret in his eyes, and Kurt took a deep breath to calm himself down.

They needed to be adults about this. "Scared about what?" Kurt asked, his voice resumed to a normal volume.

"That our roles are reversed. You’re the strong one, I’m the weak one. That’s not how they should be."

"What do you mean, ‘not how they should be?’ For God’s sake, there’s no set way to life, Blaine," Kurt scoffed, rage building up in him again. "Are you actually telling me you meddled in my relationships to boost your damn ego?" 

"Look at the facts, Kurt!" Blaine screamed as he slammed his fist on the table. "I was the leader of the Warblers; I boxed; I was a cheerleader; I was the lead in West Side Story," he made his way over to Kurt and shoved his finger into his chest, "you were just a damn Prom Queen."

Kurt gasped and tears welled up in the corners of his eyes. "We broke up," he whispered, "that night I broke up with you because you-"

"No. Kurt, listen, that’s not what happened," Blaine said, putting his finger over Kurt’s lips.

"Don’t touch me," Kurt pushed his finger away and stared directly into Blaine’s eyes, "and don’t lie to me anymore. I remember, Blaine. I gave you the ring. I had to leave work early. Then, I went to help the poor kid that was being bashed." 

Blaine looked down and mumbled a few curse words.

"You took advantage of me," Kurt added and rubbed the spot on his finger where the engagement ring used to be. 

"What the hell did you expect me to do? You forgot we had broken up; you were happy we were together. I never wanted to break up and I still loved you." Blaine walked closer to Kurt, backing him up towards the wall. 

"You lied to me! We are so over, you motherf-" Kurt started, but Blaine’s fist connected with his face.

" _What the hell!_ "

Blaine turned around to see Sam standing there, his mouth open. "Sam- I... it’s not what it looks like," Blaine stammered, tripping up on his words. 

"Get the hell out!" Sam demanded, venom dripping from his voice.

Blaine did exactly as he was told, looking over his shoulder to check that Sam wasn’t following him.

"Hey, are you okay?" Sam whispered, running over to check on his brunet friend. 

Kurt just whimpered, pulling his hand away from his face to reveal a blood-stained palm. His nose was busted. 

"C’mon, let’s go to the hospital," Sam said, putting his arm around Kurt’s shoulders. 

"N-no... just ice," Kurt said, pointing to the refrigerator. 

"Dude, it’s bleeding badly." Sam tried to convince him but Kurt refused to move. Sam sighed and guided Kurt to the sofa, gently helping him sit down. 

After a minute, Sam returned and handed Kurt a bunch of ice cubes that were shoved into a towel. "Want to explain to me why he punched you?" Sam asked.

"He got angry and he said something that triggered my memory of the night of the b- bashing. I remembered that I broke up with him, for reasons similar to what he said, and he kept it from me and pretended we were still together. And I broke up with him and, well, he’s always had anger issues, but for the first time he hit me." Kurt bit his lip apprehensively and waited for Sam to respond. 

"So, that was the first time?"

"Well, today in Stage Weaponry, he got a little bit angry and hit me with the fencing swords," Kurt admitted. 

"He always seems to be angry," Sam stated. 

"I’m sorry." Kurt cried softly, as tears fell from his eyes. He put the ice on the table and pulled a pillow against his chest as he wept. 

"Hey, dude. I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at your pathetic ex-fiancé." Sam comforted him, pulling him delicately into a hug. 

"God, I’m not even 20 and I have an ex-fiancé," Kurt realised, horror in his voice. 

"Could be worse. You could be divorced." Sam chuckled.

* * *

A few hours later, Kurt had managed to fully recover after what had happened and decided to call Elliott. 

"Hey, Sam. Is it okay if I invite Elliott over?" Kurt asked his friend. 

"Sure. I’m gonna head out anyway, I only came over to pick up my CD I lent Blaine," Sam rolled his eyes when he said his name, "but I just didn’t want to leave you alone. Call me later, ‘kay?" Sam ruffled Kurt’s hair as he went out the door.

Kurt chuckled and picked up his phone.

" _Hello_?" the familiar voice said through the phone. 

"Hi, uh, Elliott. Something happened, and I was wondering if you could, uh, come over. You don’t have to, I mean I understand-" Kurt stuttered, his face heating up. 

" _I would love to, I’ll be there in 10,_ " Elliott chirped, not put off by Kurt’s nervous state. 

"Okay," Kurt replied and hung up. 

Looking around the room, Kurt realised how messy the apartment was. He attempted to clean up a little but was limited due to how much his hands were hurting. 

Elliott ended up being 20 minutes but when Kurt opened the door he was welcomed with both a warm smile and a cheesecake. 

"You sounded pretty upset over the phone so," Elliott lifted up the cheesecake box, "I come bearing gifts." 

Kurt smiled back and led Elliott into the apartment. 

After they were sitting on the sofa, Elliott examined Kurt’s face. "You know, my memory isn’t what it used to be, but I don’t remember your nose looking that bad earlier," he said softly, almost as if he knew that Blaine had done it. 

"Blaine and I got into a fight... and I remembered how he and I broke up the night I was... you know. And I broke up with him again; he got angry and then violent... and he punched me," Kurt explained, shivering at the memory of it. 

"So he took advantage of you, then beat you because you broke it off with him? We need to go to the cops, Kurt." Elliott sighed. How could anyone do this to such a beautiful, innocent man? 

"I can’t, El. I just want to move on," Kurt said, taking Elliott’s perfect hand in his own scarred one. 

"You can’t move on until you get justice," Elliott attempted to persuade him, but Kurt simply shook his head and mumbled a quiet 'please.’ 

"Okay." Elliott attempted to change the subject. "Do you wanna watch TV?" 

"Yeah." 

Kurt rested his head on Elliott’s shoulder and, in response, Elliott put his arm over him. 

It made Elliott realise how much he wanted to protect Kurt.

* * *

After a few hours of sitting in the same position, Elliott noticed the time. 

"Hey, Kurt, it's 10 P.M. I should probably go," he whispered, trying not to scare Kurt. 

"O- Okay," Kurt stumbled, clumsily getting up to show Elliott out.

"I’ll call you," Elliott told Kurt as he stood in the hallway. He leaned in to embrace him. "Stay safe." 

Kurt chuckled as he hugged Elliott back and begun to think about how easy it was with Elliott. He felt safe when he was with him, but he hadn’t felt that way with Blaine since before the night in the car after they went to Scandals. Kurt really believed that Elliott was the only person he could be himself with. 

And, so, when Elliott pulled back from the hug, Kurt leaned forward and kissed him. Elliott immediately kissed back, putting his hands on the side of Kurt’s face to deepen the kiss. 

After a minute, Kurt pulled back and breathed heavily. 

He couldn’t shake the feeling that they had crossed a line that they shouldn’t have. 

"Kurt..." Elliott said, lingering on the name. 

Panicking, Kurt told Elliott that he should "leave," and slammed the door in his face. 

Kurt texted Elliott an apology an hour later, but when he checked his phone before he went to bed he, saw that his message had been left on read. 

"Stupid read receipts," Kurt mumbled to himself and curled up in a ball on his bed. "Stupid Elliott Gilbert," he whispered as he let tears fall from his eyes. "Stupid Blaine Anderson." Kurt was sobbing at this point and he pulled a pillow over his face.

* * *

The next morning, Kurt woke up to the sound of knocking on his door. He grunted and slowly picked himself up to answer it but saw that Rachel had beat him to it.

"Hey! Glad you’re up," Sam chirped, sounding lively. 

_What is Sam doing here_ , Kurt thought. 

"Hey, I’m gonna check the NYADA website," Kurt informed them and went back into his room. 

"Is he okay?" Kurt heard Sam whisper. 

"Yeah, he’s just always on there because he feels like he’s missing out. Madame Tibideaux said he needed another few days off because of what happened in fencing," Rachel hissed back. 

Kurt rolled his eyes. Couldn’t they mind their own business? 

He grabbed his phone and saw that he had a bunch of texts and notifications. 

**Dude! Check the NYADA page right now!!**

**Ohmygod!!! You won’t believe it!**

**Bro r u ok?**

Kurt had a tight feeling in his chest as he read through his texts.

Was he kicked out of NYADA? Had he been dropped from some of his classes? Had he automatically failed his mid-winter critique? 

It was worse. 

Way worse. 

" _NYADA student, Blaine Anderson, has quit the school. Madam Tibideaux gave Mr Anderson the choice to leave respectfully or he would be automatically cut from the program after Mr Anderson was caught using the classes that the school provided to abuse another unnamed student._ "

Kurt felt sick. He stumbled his way into the main room, not watching where he was going. 

"Kurt, hey, you okay?" Sam asked as Kurt accidentally collided with him.

Kurt shook his head and put his phone into Sam’s hand. 

"What? Oh my god." Sam gasped and turned to Rachel. "Blaine quit NYADA." 

"Oh, honey," Rachel whispered, walking to Kurt and hugging him. 

"It’s my fault," Kurt said. "I was why he quit."


	3. Treat You Better

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurt finds Elliott and tries to make up with him for kicking him out. While out at a bar, Kurt runs into someone from his past. Elliott starts seeing someone new.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW- Mention of past r*pe.

"Who is it?" Elliott asked the visitor at the other side of his door. 

"Kurt. Can you please let me in?" the small voice said. 

Sighing, Elliott removed the chain and looked at Kurt, unimpressed. 

"You know, I ignored your texts and calls because I didn't want to talk to you," Elliott explained. 

Kurt didn't reply but instead held out the flowers in his arms. 

Roses. 

"An apology note, huh?" Elliott examined the piece of paper that was stuffed in the middle of the flowers. "'Dear Elliott, I am so sorry for what I did the other day. I know there's no excuse for what I did, but Blaine and I had just broken up. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kissed you. Love, Kurt xx.'"

Elliott set the flowers on the table and embraced Kurt in a hug. "Nice calligraphy, by the way," he added, making Kurt giggle. "Are you going to say anything?"

Kurt smiled softly and pulled another note out of his pocket. 

"'You said you didn't want to talk to me,'" Elliott read out loud, then gave Kurt an amused look. "Very funny." 

Kurt chuckled again, then said, "I'm sorry." 

"Don't apologise. What do you say you and I go to a club tonight? I'll pick you up at 8," Elliott asked, winking at Kurt. 

"Really? So, you forgive me?" Kurt sounded as if he was in disbelief. 

Elliott just grinned at Kurt's childish behaviour and pulled him into another hug.

* * *

"Want to dance?" Kurt asked Elliott, the effect of the alcohol he'd already drunk kicking in. 

"You're adorable," Elliott laughed, "we literally just danced." 

"C'mon, El! I'll show you my moves," Kurt teased, gently pulling Elliott to the dance floor. 

"Well, how can I say no to that." Elliott smirked, enjoying how confident his friend was being. 

Kurt pulled Elliott close to him and threw his arms around his neck, and began to sway to the beat of the music. 

"You having a good time, Kurt?" Elliott asked, putting his hands on Kurt's hips. 

"Definitely. I'm so glad we're friends." 

"I'd normally wait until you were sober, but who knows how long that will be," Elliott chuckled, "but I really want to do this."

"Do what?" Kurt asked innocently. 

Elliott kissed Kurt passionately. He waited for Kurt to say something, but instead, Kurt kissed him back. 

Kurt pulled away. "I have to pee," he said and excused himself from Elliott.

* * *

On his way back from the bathroom, Kurt decided to get a drink. He was standing at the bar when he recognised a familiar gelled head of hair. 

"Blaine?" Kurt stuttered, looking around for Elliott. 

"Kurt!" Blaine grinned at him joyfully. 

"I have to go." Kurt tried to get away. 

"Wait, let me buy you a drink. It's the least I can do." 

Kurt hesitated. It was just one drink. "Okay."

"Did you hear I left NYADA?" Blaine asked, making small conversation. 

"Yeah, a couple of days ago?" Kurt knew alright. It was all that was on his mind. 

"Here." Blaine handed Kurt a glass.

Kurt took a sip and immediately loved it. "Mm, what is it?" 

"Little mix of my own. Personal favourite," Blaine informed, then moved onto something more personal. "Have you been seeing anyone?" 

"Not really. You?"

"Couple of hookups. Nothing serious. Who are you here with?" 

"Elliott... I should go find him act-" Kurt started, but was interrupted by Blaine raising the glass to his lips. 

Kurt finished the glass and smiled. Blaine always felt familiar to him. 

"You?" Kurt asked. Then, when Blaine looked confused, he added, "Who are you here with?" 

"Oh, I work here now. Ever since I left NYADA, a friend hooked me up here with a job for cash," Blaine explained, seeing a bit full of himself. 

"My head hurts," Kurt commented, feeling the throbbing pain in his forehead. 

"I'll take you home," Blaine offered Kurt and put his arm around him. 

"You know, I still love you," Kurt told Blaine, but then he frowned. He didn't want to say that.

"I love you too," Blaine smiled; he truly thought he would get Kurt back. 

Blaine removed his arm from Kurt and faced him.

"Oh," Kurt mumbled, looking at the ground.

Blaine pushed Kurt's chin up with his finger and leaned forward to kiss him.

On reflex, Kurt kissed back. 

"Kurt..." Blaine moaned, leaning in for another kiss.

"Elliott..." Kurt whispered seductively.

"What?" 

"Huh?" Kurt blinked his eyes, clearly not catching on to what happened. 

"Your boyfriend is here," Blaine scoffed, abandoning Kurt. 

Kurt turned around and saw Elliott standing there, looking betrayed. 

"You kissed him," Elliott stated. 

"Yeah," Kurt shrugged, pulling his arms around himself tightly, "I'm sorry." 

"Are you back with him?" Elliott asked, narrowing his eyes. 

"No. I don't know what happened... I just feel really weird," Kurt explained. "He kissed me." 

"And you kissed him back." 

"I'm sorry," Kurt repeated, then Elliott went over to him and hugged him. 

"This wasn't how I was planning on our first date going," Elliott muttered into Kurt's hair. 

"This was a date?" Kurt questioned, looking confused. 

"You didn't know?" Elliott asked, then chuckled as he added, "I guess I wasn't pretty clear." 

"First date at a club, huh." Kurt rolled his eyes playfully. 

"Do you remember? This was the club where we had our first guy night.”

"Oh, yeah.” 

"I'm gonna go, okay? Are you okay to get home yourself?"

"Yeah... I'll see you later."

* * *

Opening his eyes, Kurt slapped his alarm to turn it off. He considered calling in sick as he still wasn't over Saturday night. However, it was his first day back at NYADA and he still had to do his mid-winter critique. 

After spending the weekend arguing with himself about what to sing, Kurt ultimately decided on _I'm Still Here_ , figuring that it was the most appropriate choice considering what he had been through. 

Even after all the performances he had executed at NYADA, he still felt anxiety in his chest as he was called up by Madame Tibideaux. 

As the music began playing, Kurt's mind wandered to all the horrible things that had happened to him in his life.

When he was 8 years old, his mom had died. Kurt remembered the day she died clearly; the way that he was rushed to his Aunt's as his dad went to the hospital. He remembered not understanding what was happening. And he wouldn't ever be able to forget the way his dad softly told him that he wouldn't see his mom again. 

Sadly, his life only went downhill from there. When he was 15, his dad decided to move them to Lima, and Kurt was transferred to McKinley. At his old school, Kurt was accepted for being different, as he and his peers had grown up together; however, at McKinley, he was bullied every day for wanting to be himself. 

After he joined Glee Club, Kurt believed his life was finally going to get better. Then his dad had a heart attack, and he had never felt more alone. Thankfully, his dad recovered, but Kurt had had a constant pit of anxiety in his stomach ever since.

Sick of all the bullying, Kurt confronted Karofsky to find out what his real issue was. Karofsky stole Kurt's real kiss. Ever since that day, Kurt had always felt violated and on edge.

After Kurt met Blaine, it seemed like all the problems of his bullying could be solved. Blaine had overcome being beaten up at his Sadie Hawkins dance, so he could help Kurt, right? Instead, Blaine made all of his problems worse and increased the bullying towards Kurt. 

Not to mention Kurt being completely humiliated in front of the whole school. On his Junior Prom Night, Kurt was made Prom Queen as a prank. Granted, he did own it.

After not getting Tony in West Side Story, Kurt went to Scandals with Blaine. It was horrible enough seeing Blaine spend the whole night dancing with Sebastian, but then Blaine expected Kurt to sleep with him. Despite Kurt telling Blaine multiple times that he didn't want to and that he wasn't in the mood, Blaine continued to kiss Kurt and pull him on top of him. Kurt was still yet to recover. 

On top of the gay-bashing and the whole Blaine fiasco, Kurt realised that he needed to go back to therapy. 

He was amazed that he was even standing there, performing for Madame Tibideaux. 

And so, he put everything he had into his performance, dancing to add a slight comedic factor, and singing with everything he had. 

"Kurt Hummel is here!" he sang sassily, jumping on top of the piano. "Whoo!" 

The noise of the applause from the spectators and audience deafened Kurt but he couldn't help but smile as his friends ran up to him and hugged him. 

As he looked through the crowd, Madame Tibideaux's smile caught his eye.

* * *

"So, what's up?" Sam asked Kurt, looking at him with caution in his eyes. Sam still wasn't over the bashing and was always wary of Kurt's health. "You sounded kinda worried on the phone." 

"On Saturday, Elliott asked me on a date- well, I didn't know at the time it was a date- and, uh, I went to get a drink and Blaine was at the bar. Long story short, we kissed and Elliott saw and we haven't spoken since," Kurt caught Sam up, feeling disappointed in himself. 

"Did you want him to kiss you?" Sam asked. Kurt was surprised at his calmness. 

"Not really, but it was familiar, you know? Like if you kissed Quinn, or Mercedes, or Santana, or Britt- dang, Sam, you've dated a lot of women." Kurt chucked. "It was sort of my fault anyway, I told him I loved him." 

"What?"

"I don't know- I've just been exhausted lately, and I miss him, and I was drunk... it was a huge mistake," Kurt expressed, shame building up in him. 

"And you need me to help you get Elliott back." 

"Please?" Kurt smiled sweetly, using his best puppy eyes. 

"Do you like him? As in, more than a friend."

"I think I do." Kurt smiled softly as he thought of Elliott. 

"Then tell him. Tell him what you told me. You have to be honest Kurt: do you want a relationship with him?" Sam took Kurt's hand and rubbed his scars gently, wishing the best for his friend.

* * *

The next day, after finishing NYADA, Kurt went to the Spotlight Diner to find Dani. She was the only person who knew Elliott as well as him, and he would need her help on how to tell him his feelings.

He saw Dani immediately but she seemed to be talking to a guy that Kurt hasn't seen before. As Kurt looked around for a place to hide until the guy had left, his eyes laid eyes on familiar dark brown hair- Elliott. He watched in horror as Elliott hugged the guy that Dani was with and put his arm around him. 

"Hey, do you know where Gunther is?" Kurt whispered to a waitress, Valerie.

"Yeah, in the back. Are you doing better?" she asked, seeming to genuinely care. 

Kurt smiled weakly. "Getting there." 

He headed into the back room and saw Gunther smoking with the back door open. After Gunther didn't acknowledge that Kurt had walked in, he awkwardly cleared his throat. 

"Oh, Kurt. You're not in today," Gunther said.

"Uh, no. I was wondering if I could come back sooner." He didn't want to go back, but he needed an excuse to be in the diner.

"How are your injuries?" Gunther asked, but Kurt noticed he cared less than Valerie.

"Better." 

"I don't see why not. Come in on Thursday," Gunther said. "I'll give you a raise since you're so dedicated." 

Kurt thanked him and rushed out of the diner before Dani or Elliott could see him.

* * *

"Serenade him," Rachel said as if it was obvious. 

"You know, I've messed up twice already, and he's seeing someone else. I don't think singing a song in my gold leather pants will fix it," Kurt pointed out, getting another bite of cheesecake.

"Who said anything about your gold leather pants?" Sam asked. 

"They do me justice." 

"They do. I wanted to make out with you when I first saw you in them," Rachel added, fake drooling. 

"That's why I stopped wearing them in front of her," Kurt whispered to Sam, pointing at her with his fork. 

"Anyway," Rachel drawled, "you should sing something that will make him want to be with you instead of the other guy." 

"Yeah, you're a catch Kurt, he'd be crazy not to want you. No homo," Sam said as he playfully punched Kurt on the arm. 

"Plus, he probably hasn't been seeing him long if you guys only had a date on Saturday." Rachel crossed her arms, looking pleased with herself. 

"Well, there's one other issue. I've never serenaded anyone," Kurt admitted. 

"What?" "How?" Rachel and Sam said at the same time. 

"I've never had to. I've always been the one to _be_ serenaded." Kurt's face flushed with embarrassment. 

"Damn, look at you getting all the guys." Rachel laughed, though there was a hint of jealousy in her tone. 

"And girls. Before I told Mercedes I was gay, she sang this weird love song to me, and when I was done acting straight to try and have more things in common with my dad and broke up with Brittany, she sang _I Want You Back_. Apparently, I was the best kiss she'd had," Kurt chuckled dryly. 

" _Pink Houses_ still haunts me to this day." Rachel shuddered, remembering Butch Kurt. 

"You had to tell Mercedes you were gay? And you dated Brittany?" Sam's jaw dropped. 

"This was way before you came. I was going through a bit of an identity crisis," Kurt told him, though it didn't chill Sam out at all. 

"Why don't you rent out the Spotlight Diner? Close up for Gunther and invite Elliott over and sing for him then; it'll be private," Rachel suggested, and Kurt nodded. 

It was perfect.

* * *

"Kurt? What's going on?" Elliott tried to look for Kurt and checked his phone to make sure he got the time right. 

"Hey, Elliott. I, uh, want to serenade you," Kurt yelled, walking onto the stage. 

Elliott was taken back by Kurt's appearance. He was wearing a long-sleeved black shirt with gold leather pants that were incredibly tight in a good way. His hair was spiked up but still fluffy, and his face looked mature. 

"You know, when people serenade others, they don't usually announce it first." Elliott couldn't help but laugh, Kurt was too adorable. 

"Sorry, it's my first time," Kurt apologised and got out his phone to start the music. 

"Go on then, you've caught my interest," Elliott gestured for Kurt to start while sitting down on a stool. 

Kurt pressed play, and sang _Treat You Better_ , but made it into his own version. He walked off the stage, grabbed Elliott's arms and pulled him up so they could dance together. 

Elliott loved Kurt's voice, and it made him feel special that Kurt was singing to him. 

After Kurt hit the final note, Elliott cheered and clapped for him, and imitated throwing him a rose. 

"Well?" Kurt asked nervously, waiting for Elliott's response. 

"That was beautiful... but, uh, the song choice? Isn't it meant for someone who is taken?" Elliott asked, taking Kurt's hand. 

"You're not- but I saw you with a guy a few days ago..." Kurt trailed off, realising that he may have assumed too much. 

"Here? A of couple days...? Oh... that was my old roommate, he just came back from a trip. He's not my boyfriend, in fact, he just moved in with his girlfriend." Kurt facepalmed as Elliott explained, feeling stupid. 

"I'm so sorry... I honestly don't know what I was thinking. I came here to ask you out, but I saw Dani, then I saw you hug Mystery Guy, and I got so upset. I didn't want you to see me so I went to find Gunther and now I'm working here a lot sooner than I should b-" Kurt rambled, and was relieved when Elliott put his finger on Kurt's lip. 

"Yes, I'll go out with you," he whispered, then removed his finger and kissed Kurt gently. 

Kurt kissed him back and threw his arms around Elliott's neck; Elliott wrapped his around Kurt's hips. 

Neither of them knew how long they kissed for, but they never wanted it to end.


	4. Vulnerable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While walking with Elliott, Kurt sees someone that he thought he moved on from. Santana comes back from her visit home, while Sam tries to figure things out.

Kurt had never been happier. He was finally back at the Spotlight Diner, he passed his NYADA mid-winter critique, his band was doing incredible, and he was dating the boy of his dreams. 

Speaking of his amazing boyfriend, Kurt was taking a gentle stroll down the streets of New York, holding hands with Elliott. 

They had been together for a couple of weeks, but to Kurt, it had felt like months. Maybe it was because they were friends for so long beforehand.

“You want to get something to eat?” Elliott asked Kurt, nodding towards a café.

“Yep!” Kurt grinned and they entered the small café. 

“Coffee?” Elliott guessed Kurt’s order and Kurt nodded in response. 

While Elliott joined the line to order, Kurt looked around for a table for two. After seating, he pulled out his phone and began to scroll through old texts with Blaine that he hadn’t deleted. 

To anyone who didn’t know them, the texts would have been innocent and cute.

But Kurt could see behind the emojis and x’s and realised how unhealthy their relationship was. Blaine controlled everything. 

“Hey, what’re you thinking about?” Elliott asked carefully, passing Kurt his coffee.

“...Llamas,” Kurt answered and added a thank you when he took a sip of coffee. 

“Cute.” Elliott chuckled. 

Kurt inhaled sharply when his eyes met with older, hate-filled ones that were approaching the counter. The eyes of the man who smashed a brick on his head. 

“Kurt?” Elliott attempted to get his boyfriend's attention. “Are you okay? You look a little-” 

“It’s him. One of the guys who bashed me,” Kurt whispered, his voice catching. 

“Okay, let’s go.” Elliott grabbed his drink with one hand and Kurt’s arm with the other. 

“Thank you,” Kurt said, feeling relieved that he had such an understanding boyfriend. 

Elliott led them into an isolated ally and hugged Kurt. “Are you okay?” he asked again, stroking Kurt’s soft hair. 

“It’s just hard to get, you know? That he could just do something like that then go about his day like it was nothing. That _our lives_ are _nothing_!” Kurt began crying as he realised for the first time, “I could have _died_ that night. A _teenager_ could have _died_ that night. Would he have cared? Would any of them have cared?” 

“I’m sorry, Kurt.” Elliott didn’t know why else to say. 

“I’ll call you later, I need to be alone.” Kurt sighed and walked away. 

“Kurt...” Elliott yelled after him, but Kurt didn’t turn back.

* * *

Later that night, Elliott’s phone buzzed 10 times in a row. 

“Huh?” he mumbled to himself as he read through the texts. 

They were from Kurt but made no sense. Some were him telling Elliott that he was great, but the rest were all random keyboard smashes consisting of random letters and emojis. 

Feeling concerned, Elliott called Kurt to make sure he was okay.

“ _Hello-o-o-o-o?_ ” Kurt sang when he eventually picked up. 

“Hey, babe, are you okay?” Elliott asked, swearing he could hear music in the background. 

“ _Yeah... do you ne -need anything?_ ” Kurt sounded drunk and Elliott assumed he was at a bar. 

“Where are you?” 

Kurt told Elliott the location- he was right, it was a bar- and Elliott grabbed his keys and headed there. 

“Stay there, okay,” Elliott told him and hung up before Kurt could protest.

* * *

Kurt was sitting on a stool at the bar when Elliott got there, and as soon as he saw him, Elliott could see the sadness in his eyes. 

“Let’s go home, you have work tomorrow,” Elliott told him and put his arm around Kurt’s shoulders to help him stand up. 

“‘Kay,” Kurt agreed, and willingly abandoned his seat. 

The cold air was a huge surprise to Kurt, as when he first went into the bar it was still slightly warm out. 

“You’re a good friend,” Kurt mumbled to Elliott. “You always look after me.” 

“I’m not your friend, I’m your boyfriend.” Elliott tried to laugh but he felt uneasy.

“I think we should be friends,” Kurt admitted, his voice small.

Elliott stopped walking and removed his arm from Kurt. “What?”

“I love you, El... but I don’t think I’m ready to date yet. I can’t be strong for you. I keep dragging you down with me.” Kurt looked at the floor, his head hung.

“Is this about earlier? Kurt- you saw the guy that tried to kill you. You acted completely normally- you-” Elliott tried to make Kurt understand that he wasn’t weak, but Kurt wouldn’t listen. 

“I’m sorry. Can we stay friends?” 

“Is this what you want?” Elliott asked, tears forming in his eyes. 

Kurt nodded, and repeated, “Can we stay friends?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Elliott nodded, and tears finally fell. He had lost the best thing that had ever happened to him.

“I’m gonna get an Uber,” Kurt told him, inferring that Elliott should leave. 

“Okay, see you around.” 

“See ya.” Kurt smiled gently and got out his phone. 

Elliott, wanting to think, walked the entire way home and went over his life choices.

”Lady Hummel, I’m back!” Santana sang, swinging open the front door to the loft, but her smile immediately fell when she saw tears rolling softly down Kurt’s cheeks. 

“What’s up?” Santana asked, her voice softer. 

3 boxes of tissues, 2 hours and one cheesecake later, Kurt caught Santana up on what she had missed. 

“And then I got an Uber home.” Kurt sighed dramatically and rested his head on Santana’s shoulder. 

“Damn, at least your love life is finally getting interesting. And how come no one called me about your attack, or Blaine, or you and Elliott, huh? I’ll give you a pass since you are going through a lot. But Trouty Mouth and Stubbles? Rude,” Santana ranted, stroking Kurt’s hair. After living with him for a year, she learned it as a method to get him to calm down. 

“What do I do?” he asked her; as if Santana could help him. 

“You’re definitely going to therapy. You need to talk this out with someone a little more experienced than your Auntie Snixx,” she told him, then she began to hum softly to _Valerie_. 

Eventually, Kurt fell asleep on Santana’s shoulder and she carried him to his bed.

“ _Hey, babe. How was Lima?_ ” Dani asked, catching up with Santana.

“The usual. Shue inappropriately danced with kids, saw Britt, gave my ‘unwanted’ opinions. But we have something more important to discuss,” Santana said, using her villainous voice. 

“ _What’s that, babe?_ ” 

“We have to get Kurt and Elliott back together. Call El and get him to meet us at Spotlight. We have some meddling to do.” Santana twirled her hair around her finger and smiled when Dani agreed.

“ _Okay._ ” 

“I love you so much.”

“ _I love you too, gotta go, see you tomorrow_ ,” Dani replied, hanging up.

When Elliott showed up at Spotlight, he was hesitant on whether he should just leave or stay. Knowing Santana, she probably had a plan that would involve him doing something against his will. 

“Hello, Elliott Starchild Gilbert, what can I do for you?” Santana asked as he took a seat opposite her and Dani. 

“You asked me here,” he stated, feeling exhausted already. 

“Correct! Now, you need to get back with Kurt.”

“Santana, I would love nothing more than to date him, but he doesn’t want to be with me. He has stuff to sort out. Maybe in the future,” Elliott explained, sighing softly. 

“He’s miserable without you,” Dani said, taking her friend’s hand. 

“I love him, but it takes two for a relationship. I can’t push him.” 

“I get it... I just hate seeing him sad, you know.” Santana smiled weakly. “I’m making him go to therapy.” 

“That’s good, at least he’s getting better,” Dani observed. 

“While we’re here, let’s sing something,” Elliott suggested, trying to make the mood better. 

* * *

“Kurt Hummel?” a person, he assumed his therapist, asked.

As he stood up, he felt his breath quicken and his hands were shaking badly. He had gone to therapy before, but when he first went his dad was with him, then he got comfortable with his therapist and was okay with going alone.

He wished that his dad was with him at that moment.

“Hi Kurt, I’m Dr Vanessa Lace, and I’ll be your therapist,” the lady introduced.

Kurt quietly said hi back. 

“Have you been to therapy before?” 

“Uhh, y- y-” Kurt cleared his throat and tried again. “Yeah. I first started when I was 8 after my mom died.” 

“Okay, why are you here today? Is it about your mom still?” She smiled sympathetically and Kurt got the feeling she understood him. 

“No, I- uh, came to terms with that a long time ago. I’m experiencing PTSD, and love-life troubles, and just having a hard time accepting the way life is,” Kurt explained, trying to stop his hands from shaking. 

“Do you want to catch me up on what happened?” she asked nicely and Kurt appreciated that she was giving him an option. 

So, his whole life story came out. Everything from his mom’s death, to the bullying, to Blaine, to the bashing, to Elliott. He never would have thought that Elliott would be an issue in his life. 

Dr Lace asked him follow-up questions, such as why he blamed himself for his mom’s death, and how bullying affected him. 

She was specifically interested in Blaine. 

“When did you realise that he wasn’t good for you?” she asked and it took Kurt a minute to answer. 

“I’m not sure, I guess around the time that he cheated on me. He wouldn’t stop trying to get me back, he sent flowers, gifts, notes... and then he did this huge proposal where he got all our friends there and I felt like I couldn’t say no. And then he came to New York and took over my life, you know. He tried to stop me from being friends with Elliott, he lied to me about breaking up. And now I’m lost with him.” Kurt sighed and put his head in his hands. 

“Have you ever had a relationship that wasn’t manipulative? Your first kiss was stolen by a man who made your life unbearable, your first relationship completely demolished your self-confidence, and your second relationship ended because of Blaine...” she explained, and it made Kurt think about it. 

“Elliott. He treated me like I was a person. He always asked me how I was, he understood how I was struggling, he stood up to Blaine,” Kurt remembered how good Elliott was to him. He really didn’t deserve him. 

“Why did you break up?” Dr Lace asked, and she was taking notes. 

Kurt gulped. “I felt like I was dragging him down. I couldn’t be strong for him, and it wasn’t fair on him. I wished that I could be as good as him.” 

“Did it ever bother him how you were?” 

“No, he loved me for how I was.” 

“So why did you leave him?” 

“I don’t know. I was drunk and emotional, and I felt bad.” Kurt frowned; he didn’t understand himself sometimes. 

“Kurt, you shouldn’t blame yourself. You’re still recovering, it’s a long process. And if Elliott wants to help, you shouldn’t push him away unless he’s not good for you. He makes you happy, and you deserve to be happy. I’m sorry, but that’s all the time we have for today, I’ll see you next week. It was nice to meet you.” She smiled warmly and Kurt felt a weight lift off his shoulder. He had confessed so much. 

“It was nice to meet you too. Thank you.” Kurt gave her a small wave and left the room.

* * *

When Kurt got home, he was greeted by Sam.

“Is it cool if I stay for a while, I have this date later and it’s at a restaurant like 5 minutes from here and-” Sam ranted quickly as soon as Kurt walked in. 

“Yeah. It’s okay,” Kurt agreed and sat down on the sofa. Sam joined him. 

“How was therapy?” he asked, and Kurt told him everything she said. 

“Damn, I’m sorry about you and Elliott,” Sam emphasised and hugged Kurt. 

When he pulled back, Sam looked at Kurt carefully.

“Are you okay, you-” Kurt began to ask him, but he was interrupted by Sam kissing him.


	5. Not The Boy Next Door

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and Kurt talk about their relationship. Kurt runs into an old flame and gets offered the opportunity of a lifetime.

“What was that?” Kurt gasped when Sam pulled back from kissing him. 

“I honestly don’t know, dude. I am so sorry. I guess- I don’t know. I’ve been struggling with my sexuality lately- and I know, that was no excuse to test it on you. It was just after we hugged... I felt something,” Sam explained but Kurt didn’t understand it all because Sam was talking so fast. 

“It’s okay... well?” Kurt asked, raising his eyebrow. 

“Well, what?” 

“What did you think? I’ve been told I’m a pretty good kisser.” Kurt smirked. He’d been kissed so much in these past few months. 

“I have some stuff to think over, but yeah; I think I’m bi. Did I ever tell you I had feelings for you? When I first joined McKinley?” Sam confessed, using his serious tone. 

“You’re kidding? I liked you too. I bet it was my version of _Le Jazz Hot_ that got you.” Kurt laughed then leaned on Sam’s shoulder. 

“You bet. I thought I was bi then, but a little while back Blaine had a crush on me, but I didn’t feel anything back,” Sam continued, looking a little stressed. 

“It’s hard to come to terms with your sexuality, I get it. I tried so hard to be like the other kids, you know to like girls. But every day, I went home after school and kissed my Zac Efron poster.” Kurt smiled when he got a laugh out of Sam. 

“You still love Elliott, don’t you?” he said, leaning his head on top of Kurt’s. 

“Yep. But you were about a 9/10 on kissing.” 

“Friends?” asked Sam, putting his pinky up. 

“Friends forever.” Kurt linked pinky with his. 

“Zac Efron, really?” Sam laughed again l, thinking of 13-year-old Kurt kissing the HSM star. 

“Says the guy that’s kissed nearly all the girls in Glee Club,” he shot back, giggling softly. 

“Says the guy that tried to date his stepbrother.” Sam was laughing harshly at this point, sounding like an air horn. 

“Hey! He wasn’t my brother at the time, and you were a stripper!” Kurt defended himself, feeling his ribs hurt from laughing so much. 

“Okay, you win,” Sam admitted defeat and put his arm around Kurt. “So, speaking of my sexuality, I have a date.” 

“With a guy?” Kurt asked, mischievousness creeping into his voice. 

“His name is Jake, he’s 19, and goes to NYU. I met him the other day and we’re gonna see how it goes,” Sam told him and sat up from his comfy position. 

“Good luck, at least you’ve had practice kissing me.” Kurt winked and waved his friend off. 

Today had been stressful.

As Sam exited Kurt’s apartment, he nearly jumped when he was shocked by a familiar face. 

Except the face wasn’t so familiar. 

The guy had the face shape of Blaine, but his hair was white instead of black, and it was like cauliflower as it wasn’t gelled back. His eyes were accessorised with purple eye bags. 

To summarise, he didn’t look good. 

“What are you doing here, Blaine?” Sam asked, anger rising in him. He had been in such a good mood, too. 

“I need your help. C’mon, we’re friends,” Blaine told him, his voice sounded dry and breathy. 

“We stopped being friends the second you hit Kurt.” He tried to make his voice threatening, but he didn’t want to be too loud so that Kurt wouldn’t hear him. 

“Help me get Kurt back. I need him, please,” Blaine begged, and suddenly, Sam was past caring. 

“You know what, Blaine? You don’t deserve Kurt, you never did. You don’t deserve anyone. You are an abusive, manipulative piece of crap, and the only thing you deserve is a better haircut, and that is just to stop anyone who looks at you from suffering! You really need to take a look at yourself and rethink your entire life. Now get the hell out, and go be a bother to someone else for a change,” Sam yelled and shoved past Blaine to get down the stairs. 

He didn’t go to the restaurant until he knew that Blaine had left the building.

“Hey, Jake,” Sam greeted the friendly face that he recognised. 

“Sam!” the older male greeted him with a toothy grin, which made Sam smile bigger. 

At first, Sam thought that having a date in public was a bad idea. The bashing incident with Kurt made him even more afraid, but after he met Jake he suddenly didn’t care. Jake made him proud to be who he was. 

Jake was perfect in every way. He reminded Sam of Kurt, save the fact that Jake had smooth brown skin and black curls, opposite to Kurt’s porcelain-like skin and wavy brown hair.

However, they were both funny, polite, and genuinely cared for Sam. 

The date went fantastic, and they arranged another quickly. 

After they left the restaurant, Jake walked Sam back to his apartment. 

“So, I’ll see you Saturday?” Jake confirmed, to which Sam nodded. 

Even though Jake was older, Sam was taller, so he leaned in and kissed Jake softly. He felt weightless when Jake kissed him back. 

Thank God he had practised on Kurt.

* * *

**Dani: ONE THREE HILL PRACTICE TOMORROW! BE THERE OR BE SQUARE**

Kurt chuckled as he read the text that Dani sent to the OTH group chat, which consisted of himself, Dani and Elliott. 

Elliott was the first to reply, saying: **_Will definitely be there- I’ll bring pizza_**

After a minute of debating, Kurt decided to message back: **_Same, minus the pizza- Kurt xx_**

* * *

Elliott, true to his word, brought pizza, which Kurt ate 50% of in the first 10 minutes of the practice. 

“Okay, one more rehearsal, and then I better head off,” Dani told them and picked up her guitar. 

“What? We’ve not even practised once yet,” Kurt pointed out, chewing on the crust of his final slice of pizza. 

Dani shrugged off Kurt’s comment. “Yeah, well, let’s get on with it.” 

“What are we doing?” Elliott asked, picking up his own guitar.

“Let’s perfect _The Happening_. Kurt, you take the first lead.” Dani tossed him the microphone and began to play the introduction on her guitar, while Kurt did the same on his keyboard.

After they finished the song, Dani grabbed her guitar and bag and said goodbye to the two men.

“How long can you stay?” Elliott asked quietly, sensing the awkward atmosphere.

“Well, my dad says my curfew is 10:00, but I’ll ask until half-past,” Kurt joked, laughing at his own sense of humour. 

“Funny. I’ll rephrase, do we have time to watch Titanic?” Elliott asked, chuckling softly.

“Only if you have time to argue after about how there was room on the door for the both of them.” Kurt winked, and suddenly things felt normal again. 

There was no awkward tension or stiff conversation; everything just flowed. 

* * *

After the movie and Kurt’s 40-minute rant, Elliott approached a sensitive subject. 

“How’s therapy?” he asked, in his head planning multiple ways to change the subject if the question made Kurt upset. 

“Okay... Dr Lace seems to like you. She thinks that you’re good for me and that you help me see myself in a positive light,” he explained, smiling at his friend. 

“Well, I want you to know how amazing you are.” Elliott looked at Kurt with longing in his eyes, even though Kurt wanted to kiss him, he couldn’t risk it. 

“I’m glad that we’re friends; there’s no way we can mess it up,” Kurt said, hoping that Elliott would understand what he was trying to say. 

“Yeah. Just friends, I understand.” Elliott smiled in acknowledgement. “What you want is most important, Kurt.” 

“Thank you,” Kurt pulled his phone out of his pocket to check for any messages,

“Damn, it’s 1 A.M. I might wanna head out.” Kurt grabbed his bag, stuffed his music sheets into it, and kissed Elliott on the cheek as he walked to the door. “Catch ya later.” he waved and Elliott responded the same way. 

* * *

A week later, Kurt was looking at flyers pinned on the wall at NYADA when he was approached by a familiar British voice. 

“‘Ello, Kurt,” Adam greeted, standing next to him. 

“Adam! Hey, how’s it going?” Kurt couldn’t help but feel elated to see his ex-boyfriend. 

He still felt awful about having to break up with Adam because of Blaine, and he knew that Adam felt the same about kicking Kurt out of the Adam’s Apples. 

“I’m brilliant, what about you?” he returned the comment politely. 

“Same.” 

“I heard about your accident, I’m really sorry.” Adam looked at Kurt with sympathy in his eyes. 

Kurt took a deep breath and smiled at Adam. “It hasn’t been easy, but I’m getting better.” 

“Do you want to talk about it? Over a cup of tea, maybe?” Adam offered, and Kurt accepted quickly.

”You know, despite NYADA being so pretentious, their drinks aren’t amazing quality,” Kurt observed, grimacing as he sipped. 

“Exactly! But they are cheap.” Adam added, then sighed. “So, are you in any other clubs at NYADA?” 

“Not really, I only came back just over a month ago, so I’ve had a lot of catch up work to do,” Kurt told him, and remembered how much he missed being a part of a group. 

“Do you want to join Adam’s Apples again?” Adam asked, his eyes sparkling. 

“Are you kidding? Of course!”

“Great! I’ve missed having you ‘round. I’m really sorry about kicking you out before. I let my feelings ruin our friendship,” Adam admitted and passed Kurt his phone. “Add your number back?” 

“Sure, and don’t worry about it. You had every right to kick me out. I shouldn’t have gotten engaged to Blaine while we were dating.” Kurt shrugged as he passed Adam back his phone after putting his number in. 

“From what I heard, it was a proposal that couldn’t be rejected.” Adam recalled the rumours that he had heard about the huge ‘Klaine’ proposal. 

“Literally. It was either be a horrible person and break up with you or be a horrible person and reject Blaine. I always make the wrong choice,” he mumbled the last part, wondering how his life would have been if he had stayed with Adam. 

“I understand. The pressure was extreme, can’t say that I wouldn’t have done the same thing if I was in your shoes.” Adam decided to change the subject so he could find out if Kurt was single. “I saw your band the other day. One Three Hill.” 

Kurt perked up at the mention of him and his friends. “Oh? Did you like it?” 

“Yeah, you guys are great. That guy, Elliott, is he your...” Adam trailed off, hoping that Kurt would infer what he was asking. 

“My recent ex, but we’re still friends,” Kurt informed him. 

The bell rang to end the lunch period, and Adam and Kurt said their goodbyes.

* * *

Even 3 hours later, Kurt still felt like he was walking on air. Lucky for him, his day would only get better. 

“ _Dude! Do I have an awesome surprise for you_ ,” Sam yelled into the phone; Kurt had to move his phone away from his ear. 

“Enlighten me,” he replied, wondering what could be so ‘awesome.’ 

“ _Right, so this guy who is my friend at the modelling agency, his_ brother _is the casting director at this theatre company, and I got you an audition!_ ” Sam exclaimed, his voice sounding more like Kurt’s as he went on. “ _It’s_ The Boy From Oz _. You did that, right, for your NYADA audition? You’ve got this dude!_ ” 

“Sam... you’re amazing!” Kurt felt like crying. Finally, his career was _going somewhere!_

Sam gave Kurt the theatre location and the date for his audition. Kurt had 3 days to perfect his audition song, and he made a mental note to see Madame Tibideaux to ask for notes on his _Not The Boy Next Door_ performance.

* * *

“Hi, I’m Kurt Hummel and I’ll be auditioning for the role of Peter Allen,” Kurt told the casting director, holding his hands together to stop them from shaking. 

The director simply nodded, prompting Kurt to continue. 

“I’ll be singing _Not The Boy Next Door_ , if that’s okay.” Kurt cursed himself for being so scared, but the director didn’t seem disturbed as, again, he nodded. 

As the music started, Kurt took a deep breath and repeated what he did at his NYADA audition. After seeing Madame Tibideaux, he was told that his audition was perfect, but it lacked a little emotion.

Though the specific song isn’t too moving, Madame Tibideaux said it’s good to show that he has range. 

After Kurt hit the final high note in the song, the director clapped his hands loudly. 

“That was impressive Kurt, we’ll call you and let you know,” he said, and gave Kurt a smile. 

“Thank you,” he yelled as he ran off stage. 

It could’ve been worse. 

“ _Hey Kurt, this is Will, the director. We want you to come in, sing again for the crew and other castmates. Can you come at 5?_ ” the director, Will, asked. 

“Of course!” Kurt chirped, happy that something was going well for him. 

He thanked Will and called Sam after to tell him the good news. 

“ _That’s amazing, man! I hope you get the part!_ ”

“By the way, how did your big date go?” Kurt asked him, remembering ‘Jake.’ 

“ _Amazing! We’ve been on 2 dates so far and we have a third in a few days_ ,” Sam told him, and Kurt heard the proud tone in his voice. The same tone he used to have when people asked about Blaine. 

“I hope I can meet him soon,” Kurt said and he genuinely meant it. He was happy for Sam. 

“ _I’m thinking of bringing him to one of your fancy dinner parties. You know, when we celebrate big events_ ,” Sam said, and Kurt got the hint of what he meant. 

“The role isn’t mine for sure, Sam,” Kurt chuckled. 

“ _Still, you have a lot to celebrate. Your first call back, getting rid of Blaine, your band... looks like everything's coming up Kurt_ ,” Sam pointed out, and Kurt laughed as he remembered his huge number of _Rose’s Turn_ that his dad witnessed. 

After a while longer of talking, Kurt had to leave to get ready for his call back.

* * *

”Hi,” Kurt anxiously greeted the other people in the room. 

“Everyone, this is Kurt,” Will introduced him. 

Kurt received back a chorus of “hello’s” as multiple people shook his hand. 

“Okay, so we have our Liza chosen, who is Rebecca over there,” Will informed the room, as a young girl with short black hair waved at everyone, “now, we still have to decide on our Peter Allen. So, we’re going to have you three sing for us again, then we’ll choose one.” Will tapped Kurt and two other boys on the shoulder. 

“Kurt, can you go first? I want you to sing _Once Before I Go_ ,” Will asked Kurt, and he nodded quickly. 

Kurt stood in front of everyone else, and when the music started, he began singing, feeling the emotions returning as he thought of Elliott throughout the performance. 

He was rewarded with a deafening round of applause, the loudest of all being from Will. 

“Kurt, that was fantastic. Okay, Micheal, can you sing _When I Get My Name in Lights, Reprise_ , please?” Will called up the second potential ’Peter,’ who had curly brown hair and green eyes. He was very muscular and tall and seemed threatening to Kurt. 

However, when he began singing, Kurt saw him as nothing more than a talented actor. 

The final actor, a blonde guy called Ryan, was very impressive at singing, however, he physically shook with nerves in front of a large audience. 

After Ryan sang, Will praised him then asked the three of them to wait in the other room while they discussed the final casting. 

“So, Kurt, how many auditions have you gone to?” Michael asked, trying to break the awkward silence. 

“This is my first,” he told them, wondering if he seemed really inexperienced. 

“Me too,” Ryan spoke up, looking exhausted. ”I’ve auditioned for school musicals and things, but this is my first serious one. I panicked.” 

“This is my third, the other two I got, though,” Michael said, chuckling. 

“You might get this,” Kurt smiled. They were both being friendly, despite them auditioning against each other.

“Are you kidding? You’ve got this one for sure, Kurt,” Ryan laughed. “You completely nailed it, you were born to be Peter Allen.” 

“You’ll definitely get your next audition; you won’t be so nervous now that you’ve had practice.” Kurt knew how it felt to audition for the first time, although, NYADA gave him more confidence. 

“I have another next week, understudy role in _Funny Girl_ ,” Michael told them, and Kurt gasped. 

“My friend is the lead! Rachel Berry, she’s playing Fanny,” he told them, wondering what the odds were. 

“Well, if all goes well me and her will be working together.” Michael crossed his fingers. Kurt made a note to ask Rachel if he got the role next week. 

“Guys, we have a decision.” Will walked into the room and leaned casually against the door frame. 

“Mm?” Kurt hummed, not trusting his voice. 

“Congratulations, Kurt, you’re Peter Allen.” Will smiled at Kurt, then looked sympathetically at the Ryan and Michael. “I’m sorry guys, although if you’re interested you can be understudies.”

“Yeah!” “Of course!” 

After Will left the room, the three boys congratulated and hugged each other. 

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow. Kurt, congrats on the lead.” Michael grabbed his things and patted Kurt on the shoulder. 

“Yep! You better be sick for at least two performances so we can have our time to shine!” Ryan playfully punched Kurt on the shoulder. 

“Of course! See you later!” Kurt chuckled and smiled as they both left the room. 

When he was alone, he jumped up and down and screamed in joy. He got the _lead_! He was going to be a _star_!

* * *

Popping open the champagne, Kurt spun around on his heel and faced Rachel. 

“So, what’s the big news?” Rachel asked, yawning. 

Kurt grinned, “So... Sam got me an audition for The Boy From Oz’, and I’m Peter Allen!” Kurt chirped, pouring the champagne. 

“Are you kidding?” Rachel scoffed, slamming down her glass. “Are you _trying_ to steal my spotlight? Can’t you just be happy for me? I am Fanny in _Funny Girl_! _I’m_ the lead! Ever since we were in Glee, you have been trying to one-up me,” she sneered, pointing her finger at Kurt. 

“Chill out; our shows are completely different. They’re not even coming out at the same time. I’m just trying to advance my career, not everything is about you!” Kurt told her. He felt like crying; why couldn’t she be happy for him? 

“I expect all your things out by tomorrow,” she said, her voice low. 

“What? You’re kicking me out? I’m the one that pays rent here,” he pointed out. 

“Y’know, Blaine is looking for a place to stay. Either move out, or I’ll move him in,” she threatened. 

“Would you really do that?” Kurt asked, his voice cracking. 

“Anything to get rid of bad air,” she hissed and walked off, knowing that she had won. 

Kurt packed the essentials of his things, planning on picking up the rest of his things the next day.

* * *

Kurt knocked on Elliott’s door, holding his backpack close to his chest. 

“Kurt, are you okay?” Elliott asked, noticing Kurt’s unusual posture.

“Can I move in, please? Just temporary. Rachel kicked me out,” he asked, his eyes watering. Just when something went right for him, something else had to go wrong. 

“Of course. Come on, I’ll make some coffee,” Elliott welcomed him, hugging him as he entered his apartment.

“Don’t worry. I’ll stay out of your way,” Kurt mumbled, still feeling awkward around Elliott. 


	6. You Are Not Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kurt has a date with his ex, and Blaine comes back into his life once more. Elliott goes out of town, leading to Kurt moving in with Dani and Santana for a week.

“Okay everyone, take 5!” the director, Alan yelled, throwing bottles of water at cast members. 

“Hey, Kurt, a charming British man is asking for you,” the assistant ran up to Kurt and told him. 

“British... oh! Adam?” Kurt asked, smiling at the woman. 

“Yeah, shall I let him in?” she asked politely. 

“Can you show him to my dressing room please, if it’s not too much trouble?” he asked, despite her job being to do what he asked, Kurt didn’t want to take advantage of her. 

“Of course!” 

“Thank you.” He truly did appreciate her, she had done so much for him. 

As she walked away to get Adam, Kurt grabbed a bottle of water. All the singing had dried his throat. 

He took a stroll to his dressing room, checking his messages on the way. 

“Hey, gorgeous,” Adam greeted Kurt, as he casually sat on Kurt’s chair. 

“Hey... Accent?” Kurt chuckled, unable to think of a complimentary nickname. 

“I was wondering, are you seeing anyone right now?” he asked, standing up to tower slightly over Kurt. 

“Uh.” Kurt hesitated for a minute, were him and Elliott still _slightly_ together? They had flirted slightly over the past few days, and they still definitely had feelings, but were they dating? “Nope, not seeing anyone.” 

Adam’s smile grew, and he took Kurt’s hand. 

“I know that our relationship failed in the past, but this time there’s no Blaine. Would you give us another chance?” he asked, his smiling falling a little when Kurt took in a sharp breath. 

“I would love to. It’s just, I’m a lot-” Kurt started to explain that he was still recovering, but Adam interrupted him. 

“Kurt, I get it. But I still want to be with you,” he whispered into Kurt’s ear. 

“O- Okay.” 

“Great. Dinner at 6 tomorrow at Spotlight?” he asked and Kurt nodded. 

Adam smiled and kissed Kurt on the lips. 

“See you then,” Kurt told him, hugging him before going back out to the stage. 

After rehearsal, Kurt received a text from Elliott while he was on the subway. 

**Elliott: Are you free tomorrow for rehearsal? Xx**

Kurt bit his lip. He had TBFO rehearsal tomorrow, and with the date with Adam, he probably wouldn’t have time to rehearse with Elliott. 

**Kurt: Sorry, have rehearsal and a date. Some other time. Xx**

Sighing, Kurt turned off his phone and thought about everything. Between dating Adam, rehearsal for TBFO, NYADA, working at Spotlight and therapy, he didn’t have time for One Three Hill. 

He knew that leaving NYADA wasn’t an option for him, and neither was quitting TBFO.

He didn’t need to work at Spotlight as his theatre paid well despite it being Off-Broadway. But he enjoyed working with Dani and Santana, and he loved performing for the customers. 

He didn’t need to be in the band either. If TBFO was a success, it would help him make a name for himself in the theatre industry. Living with Elliott would keep him close to him and Dani, but he loved singing with them so much.

As he stood up to exit the subway, he decided to drop working at the Spotlight diner. It was 30 hours a week (Gunther cut down his hours after the bashing), so it would give him some free time. 

On his way home, he called off at the diner and gave Gunther his two-week notice. While ordering a coffee, his phone buzzed with another text from Elliott.

**Elliott: Date? With who? Xx**

Kurt frowned. Should he tell Elliott, or just tell him to mind his own business?

**Kurt: My ex. Not Blaine. Xx.**

Elliott texted back right away.

**Elliott: I’ll help you pick out what to wear xx**

* * *

After hours of debating, Elliott and Kurt decided on black skinny jeans, a long-sleeved white shirt, a formal black vest jacket, and lace-up shoes. 

As he waited for Adam, he regretted quitting the diner. Due to them being short-staffed, Gunther was their waiter for the night and seemed to hold a grudge against Kurt.

“Hi, uh, could I order two coffees please?” Kurt asked him sweetly, putting a small smile on his face. 

“You meeting someone?” Gunther asked, raising his eyebrow like it was surprising Kurt had a date. 

“Yeah, I have a date. Adam Crawford. He’s my ex, but we’re-” Kurt began to explain but was cut off. 

“Don’t care. Two coffees, okay.” Gunther rolled his eyes at Kurt’s attempt to start a conversation with him and walked off. 

Kurt had to wait another 10 minutes for Adam to show up. When he did arrive, however, he was carrying Kurt’s favourite flowers- roses. 

“I’m sorry I’m late, I saw these in the shop on my way here and remembered roses were your favourite,” he explained as he put the flowers down and sat in the seat opposite his boyfriend. 

Kurt reached across the table and took Adam’s hands in his own and accepted his apology. 

“I have two coffees on the way, so do you want anything else?” Kurt asked Adam, passing him the menu.

“Mm, now that you mention it, nachos sound good. Wanna split ‘em?” He grinned at his boyfriend.

“Definitely. Though I’ve been ‘diet partners’ with Rachel since she got Fanny, so don’t tell her.” Kurt winked mischievously at Adam, checking the menu for prices until Adam stole the menu out of his hand. 

“Don’t even think about it, tonight’s on me.” Adam looked longingly at Kurt, twirling the menu in his hand. 

They engaged in conversation until Gunther brought their coffees, and later, their nachos. Their date lasted another two hours, as they got captured in catching up on the time they had lost together. 

“Do you want to come back to mine?” Adam asked when he noticed the time. 

“Uh,” Kurt hesitated, considering if he was ready yet, “yeah.”

* * *

Two glasses of wine later, Kurt and Adam were kissing passionately on Adam’s couch. Adam laid back and pulled Kurt on top of him, still kissing him. 

Kurt’s mind flashed back to the night of him and Blaine in the car. He felt the fear of Blaine’s strong grip on his arms and remembered himself yelling to Blaine that he didn’t want to sleep with him. 

“Adam, stop!” he shrieked, pushing himself off his boyfriend. 

Immediately, Adam stopped kissing Kurt and asked him what was wrong. 

“I’m sorry, I just can’t do this right now,” Kurt mumbled, his face heating up. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Adam asked, rubbing Kurt’s shoulder as he sat beside him. 

And, so, Kurt filled Adam in on the night in the car, which ended in Adam sighing sympathetically. 

“I understand if you don’t want to... y’know,” Adam whispered, keeping his voice low as if it was a secret.

“I’m sorry. I’m gonna go home.” Kurt bit his lip but didn’t stand up.

“You can stay the night without us having sex. Kinda like a sleepover.” Adam chuckled at his last comment. 

“I’d like that,” Kurt mumbled and snuggled into Adam’s arms. 

Later that night, Adam carried Kurt into his bed and slept on the couch.

* * *

“Kurt! Hey, come over here. We want you to meet your understudy,” Alan called Kurt over to himself, Will, and a mysterious white-haired man, whose face was buried in the script. 

Kurt’s chest felt tight. Once, Rachel had ranted for 3 hours straight about how her understudy was ‘trying to steal her role.’ What if his understudy did the same? 

Still, Kurt put on a fake smile as he headed over to them, trying to seem confident. 

“Hi, I’m Kurt-” Kurt began to introduce himself but was cut off.

“Hummel!” The white-haired man completed, revealing his face.

Kurt frowned for two reasons. Number one, since he started at NYADA he had never been able to finish introducing himself. And number two, his understudy looked an awful lot like... 

“Oh my god!” Kurt gasped. “Blaine?” 

“Kurt!” Blaine grinned at his ex-fiancé, holding out his hand. 

Kurt slowly lifted his hand, hesitant to touch Blaine. The last time he had seen him was when he told Blaine he still loved him.

“Blaine...” Kurt said again, his shocked expression fading slightly.

“Kurt?” Blaine repeated, sounding confused.

“Your hair!” Kurt choked again, finally taking in Blaine’s new appearance. 

“Yeah... I figured a new time in my life, why not a new look?” Blaine shrugged, completely unoffended by Kurt’s reaction. 

“Do you two know each other?” Will asked, noticing the one-sided tension between them. 

“Yeah, we’re-” Kurt began, but was once again cut off by Blaine. 

“Old friends. We went to high school together.” Blaine smiled at Kurt, but his ex was unable to return the gesture. 

“Well, how convenient.” Will held his hand out to Blaine, which he shook quickly. “Once again, nice to meet you, Mr Anderson, we’ll give you two time to catch up.” 

“T- Thank you,” Kurt stuttered. He had to resist the urge to beg not to be left alone with Blaine. 

“So, you got the lead,” Blaine stated the obvious, desperate to make small talk. 

“Yeah,” Kurt answered, not bothering to elaborate. Somehow, he had to get Blaine fired. 

“Y’know, I haven’t stopped thinking about you,” Blaine whispered, attempting to be seductive. He took Kurt’s hand in his, to which Kurt quickly took back. 

“Okay.” 

“I will win you back, y’know.” 

“Okay. I’m going to go to my dressing room,” Kurt excused himself and ignored Blaine as he swiftly made his exit. 

Instead of going to his dressing room, he went to find Alan to tell him he was taking a sick day.

* * *

Kurt fumbled in his bag as he looked for his keys to Elliott‘s apartment. After a full minute of looking, he sighed angrily and knocked on the door, praying that Elliott would be home. 

“Who is it?” Elliott called casually, and Kurt felt a pang of jealousy. He couldn’t ask who was at the door without looking through the peephole first and stuttering. 

“Kurt. I left my keys.” 

“‘Kay.” Elliott unlocked the door and swung it open, smiling down at his shorter friend. 

As Kurt brushed right past him, Elliott frowned and put his hand on Kurt’s shoulder. 

“You okay? You didn’t come home last night. And normally that would make you happy.” Elliott winked, hoping to get a smile out of his roommate. 

“No, I’m not.” Kurt sighed, throwing his bag onto his bed. 

“Wanna talk about it?” Elliott offered, patting the spare seat next to him on his couch. 

“You sure you want me to bother you with my issues?” Kurt asked, raising his eyebrows. 

Elliott didn’t reply but patted the couch again. When Kurt sat down, Elliott grabbed the blanket next to him and draped it gently over his friend’s shoulders. 

“Okay, so last night Adam and I went on our date and...” Kurt vented about the events that had happened to him with Adam and Blaine. 

Elliott stroked Kurt’s leg as he thought about what to say next. 

“Okay, well, at least Adam seems to understand what’s going on with you,” he said at last. 

“Yeah, he’s a good boyfriend to me.” 

Elliott rolled his eyes at hearing Kurt praise Adam. “Anyway...” he drawled out, desperate to change the subject, “you should tell your director the situation with Blaine, they’ll most likely recast.” 

“Really?” Kurt looked at Elliott with hope in his eyes. 

“Yeah. You’re the star, it’s more important to make sure you’re comfortable there than to have Blaine.” Elliott wrapped his arm around Kurt and hugged him.

Kurt smiled softly when Elliott called him a ‘star’. 

“Everything else okay?” 

Kurt nodded his head and pulled out his phone. “I’m going to call my director. Fingers crossed.” He playfully crossed his fingers. 

“Fingers crossed,” Elliott repeated. 

20 minutes later, Kurt emerged from his bedroom, a huge grin on his face. 

“They’re going to recast and Blaine’s been fired for good. Isn’t that great?!” Kurt exclaimed and engulfed Elliott in a huge hug.

“It is! Just don’t get into any more trouble while I’m gone.” Elliott laughed as he hugged his shorter friend back. 

“What?” Kurt pulled back and frowned at Elliott. “Where are you going?” 

“I’m going back to New Jersey for a week, just to see my parents. I told you on Sunday,” Elliott reminded Kurt, who let out a groan. 

“I’m so sorry, I forgot. I’ve been really busy, it must’ve slipped my mind. Do you have to go? I don’t want to be alone here,” Kurt asked, looking quickly around the apartment. He hadn’t lived there long and terror-filled him as he thought about being there by himself. 

“Sorry, but it’s kind of an anniversary thing. Why don’t you stay with Santana and Dani?” Elliott suggested, but Kurt shrugged. 

“I’ll try. But I’ll have to take my earplugs,” he and Elliott both laughed, and Kurt excused himself. “I’ll call them now. What time do you leave?” 

“My train leaves at 7.” 

Kurt pouted slightly. That only left him with 2 hours. 

“Okay. Be right back.”

* * *

He and Elliott spent the rest of their time together watching old episodes of _Friends_ and discussing conspiracy theories. 

Kurt took the taxi to the train station with Elliott and hugged him goodbye when his train came. 

“So, Santana is letting you stay?” Elliott asked.

“Yeah. It’s just a week, right?” Kurt checked, wrapping his hands tighter around Elliott’s neck. 

“Of course. I’ll call you every day, alright. I’ll miss you,” Elliott mumbled, pulling back. 

“I’ll miss you more,” Kurt replied and bit his lip as he left the station. 

He couldn’t handle seeing Elliott leave.

* * *

As Kurt browsed through Dani’s DVD collection, he marvelled at how many horror movies she had. He skimmed past all of the R rated, knowing that he wouldn’t be able to sleep with the added fear of not being in his apartment. He grinned when his eyes set on _Call Me By Your Name_. 

“I’ve found a movie,” Kurt called to the young couple. “Have you ordered takeout?” 

“Yep. It’ll be about 20 minutes,” Dani responded, putting her phone down. 

“What’s the movie?” Santana asked, and Kurt flashed her the DVD case. “Oh, hell to the no; I’m too offended to be crying.” 

“What’s wrong?” Kurt asked, putting the disc in anyway. 

Santana just grunted while Dani answered for her, “Gunther fired her so she has to look for another job.” 

“For no reason!” Santana yelled, making Kurt jump at her sudden outburst. 

“Babe, calm down. She took too many sick days and Gunther got fed up. Seems like you quitting put him on edge,” Dani explained, stroking her girlfriends back. 

“I’m sorry.” Kurt looked at Santana guiltily, biting his lips. 

“It’s okay. I was getting sick of that place anyway.” Santana smiled at her friend.

“Also, the no-rooms-thing isn’t an issue, is it? We weren’t prepared for guests,” Dani asked, gesturing to the unwalled apartment.

“It’s okay, I have an eye mask and earplugs.” Kurt chuckled, but he actually thought he would throw up.

Dani grabbed the remote and played the movie, much to Santana’s dismay.

2 hours and one takeout later, Santana and Dani kissed Kurt on the forehead and said goodnight as they went to their queen-sized bed. 

“Goodnight,” Kurt called back, as he settled down on their couch.

* * *

_“Blaine?” Kurt guessed the identity of the mysterious figure in front of him. The man’s face was covered by a hood, so Kurt couldn’t identify him. It seemed like Blaine was always appearing in front of Kurt when he least expected it, so it wouldn’t surprise him if he was there now._

_“Yeah,” Blaine’s voice answered, but it wasn’t the man in front of him._

_Kurt turned around and saw Blaine, but confusion filled him. If that was Blaine, then..._

_“Who are-” Kurt turned back to the other man, but was hit with a brick._

_Kurt yelled in pain as he fell to the floor. His face was continuously hit with the weapon, and the mysterious figure revealed himself to be the man that bashed Kurt._

_“_ Stop _it!” Kurt shouted, but the man wouldn’t give in. “Please.”_

_“Kurt? Calm down, are you okay?” Santana asked, but Kurt couldn’t see her anywhere._

_“Kurt! Wake up,” Dani’s voice chimed in._

“Wha-” Kurt mumbled, as he was gently shaken awake. 

“Kurt, sweetie, it was just a dream,” Dani whispered, stroking his hair. 

“Are you okay?” Santana asked, pressing her hand against his forehead. 

Kurt, on reflex, slapped her hand away and sat up quickly. He anxiously checked his face for any more cuts or blood and sighed in relief when his hands were clean. 

“S- Sorry,” he stuttered, his voice cracking at the end. He pulled his knees up to his chest and shivered.

“What happened?” Dani asked, looking at Santana for a second to see if she was also shocked. 

“Bad dream... Blaine... blood... bash...” Kurt whispered, his voice fading out.

After a few seconds, Santana realised that he wasn’t going to add anything else nor elaborate on what he had previously said. 

“Did Blaine hurt you again? Elliott called earlier and said Blaine was your understudy,” Santana asked, feeling anger build up in her.

“No... he was fi- fired... he was just there,” Kurt told them, squinting his eyes as he tried to remember the dream. 

“Was it the... bashing?” Dani asked, whispering the word ‘bashing’ so Kurt wouldn’t get triggered. 

“Brick, yeah. My head...” Kurt trailed off, but he rubbed his head.

“How long have you been having the dreams?” Dani asked, taking his hand.

“Since Blaine left. I- I- I can’t sleep on my own.” 

“Didn’t Elliott notice?” Santana questioned, making a mental note to ask Elliott about it later. 

“No. We have soundproof walls,” Kurt mumbled, his eyes beginning to close. 

“Come on.” Dani put Kurt’s arm over her shoulders and motioned for Santana to do the same. “You’re sleeping in bed with us tonight.” 

“M’kay...” Kurt replied, but both girls knew he wasn’t aware of what was happening. 

“There we go... comfy?” Santana asked as she pulled the covers up to Kurt’s chin. 

“Mm...” Kurt quickly lost consciousness, and both girls giggled as quietly as they could.

Dani nodded at her girlfriend and they both climbed into bed beside their friend, still comforting him.

* * *

Santana groaned as she got out of bed, cracking her fingers. She glanced over her shoulder and smiled as she saw Kurt cuddled into a ball, softly snoring. 

“Morning, babe,” Dani greeted her girlfriend, showing her the pan which contained pancake mix. “I figured we’d treat Kurt after last night.” 

“So that wasn’t a dream, Lady Hummel actually did freak out. God, I would do anything to help him.” Santana sighed, looking again at her sleeping friend. 

“Me too, so I was thinking about what he said, that he can’t sleep on his own. And he wouldn’t want to sleep with us all week, so why don’t we get him a pet?” Dani suggested, motioning to the way Kurt was hugging the pillow close to his chest. 

“Whenever we go for walks he makes us stop at the kennels and pet the cats,” Santana recalled, then she grabbed her phone off the nightstand. “I’m gonna call El and see if he’s cool with Kurt getting a cat, ‘kay?”

“‘Kay,” Dani replied as she flipped over a pancake. “When you’re done wake up Sleeping Beauty; he has school in 2 hours.” 

Santana made a noise of acknowledgement as she waited for Elliott to pick up. 

“ _Santana, what’s up?_ ” the muffled voice on the other end of the phone asked, and Santana realised that she must’ve woken him up. 

“Are you a cat person?” she asked and filled him in on the previous night. She punched the air when Elliott agreed to let Kurt have a cat. “Thank you! You’re the best!” she replied then hung up. “Wake up, angel!” Santana yelled as she jumped in the bed, playfully messing up Kurt’s hair.

* * *

Dani gave Santana a concerned look as Kurt sat down at the table. He seemed terrible, his breathing was rocky, his hands were shaking and he could barely keep his eyes open. 

“Sweetie, are you feeling okay?” Dani asked, examining her friend’s face carefully. 

“Yeah, just need coffee,” he mumbled, pouring some into a mug. 

“Hey, let’s all take the day off,” Santana proposed, taking a bite of pancake. After she swallowed, she added, “Let’s do something _fun_!” 

“Not like you had anywhere to be anyway.” Kurt smirked and high-fived Dani. 

“Since you’re Mr Funny, you can choose what we do today,” Santana told him, but she couldn’t help but smile fondly at him.

“Hmm... I don’t know. Dani?” Kurt looked to his blue-haired friend for suggestions. 

“What’s your favourite animal?” Dani asked, grabbing the syrup bottle. 

“Llamas.” 

“Wanna go to a llama farm?” Dani grinned widely when Kurt’s eyes lit up and he squealed. 

“Oh my God! Yes!” he squeaked, and Santana had to cover her ears. “When I was little my mom used to take me to one every weekend in our old town. They were so fuzzy and cute and warm.” Kurt sighed happily at the memory. 

“Okay, guys. Call in sick at school and we’ll go.” Santana told them, then picked her fork up, “I’m gonna finish these pancakes.”

Kurt could barely contain his excitement as he sat down on the isolated field. Since it was 11 P.M on a Wednesday in late December, there were barely any people there, so the three could easily find a space. Kurt admired the way the llamas grazed at the grass and watched them closely. Despite the weather not being that cold, the llamas were dressed in different coloured sweaters that Kurt wanted to stroke desperately. 

Midway through their conversation about Christmas, a llama came over to the trio and laid down next to Kurt. Kurt carefully reached out and stroked the soft creature, internally screaming. 

“Aww, it looks like someone likes you,” one of the llama keepers commented, and Kurt smiled at them. 

“So, since your life is complete right now,” Santana started, making Kurt and Dani giggle, “do you want to talk about last night?”

Kurt grew quiet and silently stoked the llama. After a minute of awkward silence, he said “Okay.” 

“What was the dream about, huh?” Dani asked, taking his llama-free hand in her own. 

Kurt filled them in on what it was about, from the mysterious hooded man, to Blaine, to the brick. 

“That’s awful,” Dani commented in a hushed tone, while Santana wanted to ask more. 

“You have that dream every night?” 

“Not always,” Kurt told her, laying back to rest his head on the llama, “sometimes it’s someone else getting bashed. Like you guys, or Rachel, or Finn, or Elliott... once it was Sue.” Kurt laughed bitterly. “Those normally torment me because I can’t save you. Blaine is normally there to put me on edge.” 

“Kurt, you can save people. You saved that kid’s life that night,” Dani told him, looking at him with sympathy filled eyes.

“You saved Karofsky, you saved Tina, you saved Rory. You do nothing but help others. Now it’s our turn to help you.”

“C‘mere,” Santana said, and she pulled Kurt into a group hug with Dani and herself. 

“I love you guys, but damn, are you sappy.” he chuckled softly, and the couple hugged him harder. 

“We love you more,” they told him and hoped that he wouldn’t forget it.


	7. Someone Like You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Santana surprises Kurt with an adorable gift, but receives unfortunate news from Adam. Kurt realise how little the bashing matters to everyone but him.

Snow fell heavily in New York, which Kurt stared at through the window while he was deep in thought. 

“Hey, sweetie,” Dani tapped Kurt on his shoulder, earning his attention, “me and Santana have a surprise for you.”

“Oh?” Kurt made a surprised noise while he followed Dani to the kitchen table. 

“Santana is just picking him up; she’s just delayed because of the snow.” 

Kurt furrowed his eyebrows. “Him?” 

“Wait and see!” Dani winked at him, causing Kurt to chuckle nervously. 

“Auntie Snixx is here!” Santana shouted as she burst through the door carrying a cat box. 

“Oh my God,” Kurt gasped, “Santana, Dani, what did you guys do?” He laughed as a brown tabby cat poked its head out of the box. 

“You said you can‘t sleep alone; hopefully, this little guy will help you until you find a boyfriend.” Santana lifted the cat out of the box and placed him onto the table.

“Actually, I do have a boyfriend,” Kurt informed them, receiving shocked glares from the two females, “but I definitely want to keep this little guy.” Kurt stroked the cat and chuckled when the animal purred loudly. 

“What’re you gonna call him?” Dani asked as she grabbed a collar from the box and passed it to Kurt. 

“First of all, this is one stylish collar,” Kurt observed and clipped it around the cat’s neck. “Secondly, what about Brian™?” 

Dani and Santana exchanged confused glances, which Kurt immediately picked up on. 

“What?” he asked, puzzled about what was wrong with the name. 

“Brian? That’s kind of... strange. I have an uncle called Brian. And, is the trademark symbol necessary?” Dani pointed out, but Kurt just shrugged her off. 

“It’s adorable and it makes him unique,” Kurt defended his choice while he picked up Brian™ and held him close. 

Brian™ licked Kurt’s chin which made the girls “aww” at him.

“So who’s your latest boy-toy, Hummel?” Santana asked, twirling her hair around her finger. 

“You remember Adam?” At the mention of his name, Santana dropped her jaw. “Well, we got back together.” 

“Because the last time you got back with an ex, it went _splendidly_ ,” Santana replied sarcastically. 

“Adam isn’t Blaine. And it’s just been one date, it’s nothing serious.” Kurt stroked Brian™ while avoiding eye contact with Santana. Somehow she had managed to voice what Kurt had been worried about. 

“Plus,” Dani began, attracting the other two’s attention, “there’s no easier way to get back into dating than to start with someone you had already dated.” 

Santana gave her girlfriend a dirty look, which led to Dani adding, “But, you know, I’ve never met this Adam, so I don’t know what he’s like.” 

“He’s incredible.” “He’s British.” Kurt and Santana said at the same time. 

“British? Oh my God, Kurt, you are _so_ lucky! My sister married a British guy and they’re practically soulmates!” Dani squealed. 

Santana rolled her eyes but smiled fondly at her partner. 

“Oh, our high-school-friends-that-we-really-should-have-outgrown-by-now are coming over,” Santana told them. She frowned as Kurt’s face paled. 

“Who does that include?” he asked, still stroking Brian™. 

“Mercedes, Sam, Artie, Finn, and Rachel.” 

“Rachel?” Kurt checked, hoping that he misheard her. 

“She asked to come. She feels awful about what she said and wants to talk to you,” Dani paused, “but if you’re not okay with it I can tell her not to-” 

“It’s okay. I was just... scared.” 

A loud knock on the door broke the silence that followed what Kurt said. 

“That must be them,” Santana said as she went to unlock the door. 

“Hola!” Sam greeted, and the gang let themselves in. 

Rachel approached Kurt anxiously with a guilty look on her face. "Hey." 

"Hey," Kurt replied, giving her a small smile. 

"I'm so sorry about what I said. I- I was petty and jealous. You know that I wouldn't've allowed Blaine to move in," Rachel explained, tears forming in her eyes. "I love you so much, Kurt, and you're my best friend. I'm so proud of you, so don't let me stop you." 

"Can I make that my ringtone?" Kurt laughed and pulled her into a hug. "I love you too, and you're my best friend. I forgive you." 

"Now that you guys are back together, come sit down. We're ordering takeout." Santana called at them, and the two joined the gang on the couch.

* * *

Eventually, the snow stopped falling, and the gang settled down to watch a movie. 

" _The Breakfast Club_!" Sam shouted, waving the DVD case in Artie's face. 

" _Clueless_!" Santana hit Sam with a pillow and passed Artie her DVD. 

"If we're going for old movies, then I'm saying _Beetlejuice_ ," Kurt suggested and smiled sweetly at Artie to convince him. 

"Why does Artie get to choose?" Dani asked, browsing through the DVD selection laid out on the coffee table. 

"Because Professor X here goes to a film academy so he thinks he's a movie genius or something," Santana scoffed. 

"And for that, Santana, _Clueless_ is eliminated." Artie winked at her. 

Sam cheered while Santana rolled her eyes again.

"Don't get too excited, Sam," Artie said, while a huge grin appeared on his face, "because it's _showtime_!" 

Kurt, Finn, and Rachel applauded and yelled when Artie rolled towards the TV to insert the disc into the DVD player.

"How have you been, Kurt?" Finn asked his brother while the movie loaded. 

"Okay, Dani and Tana got me a- ooh!" Kurt yelled as he realised that he hadn't shown his friends his new pet. 

"Got you a...?" Finn tried to prompt Kurt to finish his sentence but instead, his sibling jumped from the couch and went to the bed in the corner of the room. 

"Everyone, meet Brian™," Kurt introduced the gang to the cute creature he held close to his chest. 

"You got him a cat?" Artie asked Dani and Santana to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.

"Yep. Brian™," Dani chuckled as the name left her lips. 

Kurt brought Brian™ with him as he sat back down on the couch and smiled when his feline snuggled into his lap.

* * *

As the credits rolled for the movie, Mercades looked around the room and noticed that Kurt had fallen asleep on Santana's shoulder. 

"Guys," Mercades hissed and nodded towards the scene when she caught their attention. 

While most of them awed, Santana asked Finn to put Kurt in the bed. Finn picked up Kurt then placed him gently in the bed and whispered to him, "Night, little brother."

* * *

Much to his displeasure, the next day Kurt went back to NYADA. Despite his classes being exciting and benefitting for his future, he missed the feeling of being in the fields with Santana, Dani, and the llamas. All of that went away, however, when he saw his boyfriend.

“Hey, you!" Kurt greeted Adam with a huge smile on his face. 

"Hey. Can I talk to you... in private?" Adam asked, looking around anxiously at all the other students.

Kurt frowned. "I guess." He couldn't get the thought out of his head that something serious had happened. 

Adam led Kurt to an isolated corner of the building which was well known for where private conversations took place. 

"I know that we haven't been back together long... but were we exclusive?" Adam asked in a hushed tone. 

"I'm sorry?" Kurt wasn't sure that he understood, "Are you trying to tell me that you cheated on me?" 

"Listen, Kurt, I really do like you. You know that. But I made a mistake, I'm so sorry," Adam tried to hold Kurt's hand, but Kurt took it back. 

"Adam, I'm glad that we tried this again, but it's not going to work out. Still friends?" Kurt bit his lip as he wondered what it was about himself that made people cheat. 

“Yeah, of course. Again, I’m really sorry Ku-” Adam began, but was cut off. 

“Don’t,” Kurt muttered then walked past Adam. He hated it when people apologised for things they weren’t even sorry for. 

It was going to be a long day.

* * *

Not only did the day drag, so did the entire week. It felt like an eternity, but eventually, Elliott came back. 

“Hey! Long time no see, stranger,” Elliott greeted Kurt with a smile. They had agreed to meet at Dani and Santana’s apartment so Kurt could fetch back his things. 

“Hey! How’re your parents?” Kurt asked politely while picking up his bag. 

“They’re fine, thanks. So, catch me up.” Elliott slung his arm around Kurt’s shoulder as they exited the apartment. 

“Not much. Dani said to get Brian later. Also, it’s a good thing that your apartment has a garden.” 

“Yeah.” Elliott hesitated before asking, “How’s Adam?” As much as he hated hearing about Kurt’s love life, he knew he had to be a supportive friend. 

“We broke up,” Kurt replied with a frown. 

“Oh?” Elliott said with a little too much joy in his voice. 

“He cheated. Can I ask you something?” Kurt changed the subject quickly, wanting to avoid the speech where Elliott said he didn’t deserve Kurt. 

“Shoot.” 

“Did you ever cheat on me? Or want to? I won’t be mad, I’m just won-” 

“Never,” Elliott said quickly, “you’re too rewarding for me to want anyone else.” 

Kurt smiled. “I missed you.” 

“I missed you more, Kurt. Let’s go home,” Elliott said as they walked out of the building. 

“I wish I could find a guy like you. You’re amazing,” Kurt told him. 

Elliott laughed, although he didn’t find it funny. He held back the urge to say that he was a guy like him.

* * *

Elliott glanced around him. NYADA students surrounded him, all desperately trying to get to their next class. How was he supposed to find Adam? 

“Excuse me?” Elliott grabbed the attention of a young, female student. “Can you tell me where Adam Crawford is?” 

“Yeah, he’s holding practice for the Adam’s Apples. Just go to the end of the corridor and it’s the room on the left.” The girl pointed to a nearly empty corridor, showing Elliott where to go.

Elliott thanked her then followed her directions. When he entered the room there were a few students sitting around a stage, looking over sheet music. 

“Can I help you?” a blonde guy with glasses and a beanie asked him, approaching Elliott. 

“Yeah, I’m looking for Adam,” Elliott told the guy, then raised his eyebrow when the guy told him he was Adam. ”I’m a friend of Kurt.” 

Adam bit his lip then led Elliott into the corridor. 

“What are you doing here?” Adam asked, folding his arms. 

“Kurt has an exam, so I’m here to pick him up after. He told me what happened,” Elliott explained, glaring down at the British man. 

“Oh.” 

“How could you do that? Kurt’s a perfectly great guy, I never thought of cheating on him,” Elliott asked. He couldn’t understand. 

“I’m still a teenager. He said he wasn’t ready to have sex, and I couldn’t help myself. I never wanted to hurt him,” Adam said, and he blushed heavily. Why was he discussing his sex life with a stranger? 

“Did you ever really love him?” Elliott asked, scoffing. 

“Do you still love him?” Adam questioned.

“More than I’ve ever loved anyone.” 

“Then go get him,” Adam told him, and went back into the classroom when Elliott didn’t reply. 

“I can’t,” Elliott answered when he was alone. 

* * *

As the opening night grew near for TBFO, Kurt managed to keep calm. That was until, on the way to rehearsal, he saw a familiar face on the subway. 

The basher. 

His breathing getting unsteady, Kurt frantically looked outside the window. If he didn’t make eye contact, he should be okay. They were in public, he wouldn’t be attacked, right? 

The second the doors opened, Kurt left the subway and attempted to stop his hands from shaking, but he couldn’t get the thoughts out of his head. 

The cops weren’t doing anything. Kurt had filed several reports, yet he was still seeing the guy in public. 

How many times would he run into the basher? So far it had only been in public, but he wouldn’t always be so lucky.

If the basher was still out there, was he beating up other gay guys? People that Kurt couldn’t protect. 

And to make matters worse, Kurt was going to be late for rehearsal because he had to walk the rest of the way.

* * *

”You’re an hour late,” Alan glared at Kurt as he walked in, and Kurt gave him an apologetic look. 

“I’m sorry, I had to walk. There was a problem on the subway,” Kurt explained, but Alan wasn’t listening. 

“Just get on stage. We have 3 weeks, Kurt. Run through _Once Before I Go_ ,” he ordered, and Kurt ran onto the stage. 

After the lights had been adjusted and the introduction had been played, Kurt began singing. 

The first line had been perfect, and Alan’s smile told Kurt that he had been forgiven. 

That was until Kurt reached the second verse. His mind was clouded with the fear of after rehearsal. It was already turning dark and because of the freezing air, the streets were becoming more and more empty. He could easily be attacked. 

“Stop,” Alan yelled, and Kurt froze. 

He had messed up the words. 

“Kurt, what is your problem? First, you're late, now you don’t even know the words?” Alan shouted. Kurt felt his cheeks grow hot as he felt people staring at him. “Whatever it is, get it together. From the top.” 

Kurt took a deep breath and concentrated hard on the lyrics. He had to get this right. He couldn’t lose his chance.

* * *

“A-Alan,” Kurt stuttered, “can I talk to you?” He figured that if he could explain the issue, maybe they could figure something out. After Allen had nodded, Kurt told him about the bashing and the subway. 

“Look, I’m sorry that happened, but it’s not my problem. My problem is that my talented, leading man can’t perform correctly or arrive on time. Now, will that continue to be an issue, or will you sort yourself out?” Alan asked, folding his arms. 

Kurt grimaced. It was obvious that Alan didn’t understand how badly Kurt was affected, and he didn’t care enough to find out. Sighing in defeat, Kurt replied, “It won’t happen again.” 

He had never felt more alone.

* * *

Kurt continued to feel isolated when he sat on the subway. He felt isolated when a stranger bumped into him. He felt isolated when Elliott welcomed him home with a warm hug. No one- not even his closest friends- understood him.

“Kurt, are you okay?” Elliott asked him, and Kurt considered being honest.

“Yeah. I’m going to bed,” Kurt excused himself. He knew that Elliott knew he was lying, but it wasn’t like he could force Kurt to talk.

And Elliott couldn’t change anything.

That was when Kurt realised something.

Nothing was going to change. He would never fully recover, the streets would never be safe for him, and he would never be good enough for Elliott.

But Elliott still wanted him, and he wanted Elliott. So why was he wasting his time waiting for nothing to change, when he could be happy with Elliott?

“El?” Kurt shouted from his room. 

“Yeah?” 

“Nothing.” Kurt smiled to himself. After opening night, then he would get Elliott back.


	8. Come What May

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As opening night approaches, Kurt has to balance controlling his nerves and dealing with his love life.

Over the past 2 weeks, Kurt marked off his calendar and noticed how close his opening night was getting. Despite all the rehearsals he attended and run-throughs he did at home, he still felt like he wasn't doing enough. To make matters worse, there hadn't been a huge disaster. No costumes ruined, no accidents, no missing cast members. Everything was too ideal, and it made Kurt certain that something would go wrong during the show.

“Did you know the chances of getting a bad review to a good one are 9-1?” Kurt asked Elliott as he scrolled through his phone. 

“You made that up,” Elliott replied, rolling his eyes fondly at his friend. 

“You got me, but it probably is true. Especially if it’s _me_ performing.” Kurt sighed. He had been doing so well at staying calm, but as the opening night of TBFO grew closer his nerves increased. 

“Kurt, I’ve seen your performances at NYADA and Nationals, it’s going to be okay,” Elliott reassured his friend and stole the phone from his hand. ”Really? You’re reading reviews from Hugh Jackman’s performances. Kurt, you need to take your mind off it.” Elliott frowned, wishing he could help his friend. 

“It’s less than a week, El. It’s all I can think about.” Kurt put his hand in Elliott’s and squeezed it softly. He needed to calm himself down.

“Is there anyone you can see at NYADA?” Elliott thought deeper when Kurt just shrugged. “What’s worrying you the most?” 

“Dancing. I was nearly the worst dancer in the New Directions. Oh! I should see Miss July!” Kurt yelled and snatched his phone back from Elliott. “Thank you!” He kissed his friend on the cheek as he ran out of the room to go back to NYADA. 

“You’re welcome?” Elliott said to himself since Kurt had left him alone.

* * *

“Miss July?” Kurt poked his head into the dance teacher’s studio and smiled when he saw she was still there, stretching. 

“Hummel. What can I do for you?” She sounded polite, but Kurt could sense that she was annoyed that she had been disturbed. 

“Uh, my opening night is this Sunday,” Kurt waited for a reply, but there was none. “I was wondering if you could help me with the dancing? My choreographer said it’s fine, but she’s a little inexperienced compared to you.” Kurt hoped the compliment would persuade the teacher. 

“Show me what you got, kid. But it’s a little short notice if you’re as bad as Berry was.” Miss July sat on a bench and waited for Kurt to start. 

“What shall I do?” Kurt asked, confused about where he was meant to start. 

“Start with the hardest steps.” 

“Okay.” Kurt began to dance. At first, his steps were delicate as he concentrated hard on each movement, but as he fell into the routine he managed to move gracefully with little effort.

He carried on dancing around the studio until Miss July told him to stop. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked, looking at his feet. 

“No, that's the problem. There's nothing I can help you with. You seem to have everything figured out." She looked at Kurt's face and could see that he was disappointed. "What is it that you're worried about, Hummel?" 

“Huh?" Kurt was confused, he had told her it was the dancing. 

“It isn't the choreography. If it was, you wouldn't have waited until now for help. You have no issues with remembering or performing the steps. Do you want to tell me what it actually is?" The tone of her voice told Kurt that it wasn't an option. 

"I feel like I'm underprepared. There should be more I can do, don't you think?" Kurt sat cross-legged on the floor, looking at Miss July for any answers. 

"I get what you're saying, kid. When I was in my first show," Miss July took a deep breath, "I was certain that it would be a disaster. Everything seemed too perfect. But it was a success." 

“You think that's the case with me?" 

"Yep. You're not over-confident, you're practising, just try your best. At least it's not Broadway." She laughed. 

"Thank you." Kurt smiled at her, his nerves slightly settled. 

"Anytime. Now get out of my studio," she told him, pointing to the door.

Kurt chuckled as he walked out, thanking her again.

* * *

The final dress rehearsal came before Kurt knew it. It was 4 hours before the show and Kurt had just finished his final scene. 

“That was perfect, Kurt!" Alan cheered, running up to the stage to pat Kurt on the back. 

"Thank you," Kurt smiled at the director, then turned to Elliott who was sitting on the front row. ”Well?" 

"That was incredible, Kurt. Honestly, I'm honoured to be your friend." Elliott grinned at him and joined him on the stage. 

Kurt blushed at how close he and Elliott were. _Tonight is the night, I'm going to get him back_ , he thought. "Thanks." 

“Are you nervous?" Elliott asked when Alan had gone backstage. 

"A little." 

“Well," Elliott took Kurt's hands in his as he reassured him, "don't be. I'll be in the front row mentally cheering you on." 

Kurt nodded and hugged Elliott tightly, his nerves slipping away. There was something about Elliott that instantly made Kurt cheer up. 

"Are you coming home before it starts, or do I have to say goodbye now?" Elliott asked as he stroked Kurt's hair. 

"I have to stay here, so I'll see you just before you have to sit down," Kurt told him and kissed him on the cheek. "See ya." 

"See ya, star." Elliott gave Kurt a small wave as he ran off the stage, and immediately Kurt missed him.

* * *

"Hey!" Kurt greeted the small group of people waiting for him backstage. His eyes laid on his Dad, Sam, Rachel, Mercades, Finn, Dani, Santana, and Artie. "Where's Elliott?" Kurt began to assume that the worst had happened: Elliott was sick, or he was in an accident, or he had to go home. 

"I'm here," Elliott said from behind Kurt, and when Kurt spun around he saw that Elliott had a bunch of flowers in his arms. 

"Here. Don't look at the note until after you've amazed us all." Elliott smiled at his friend as he handed him the flowers. 

"Thank you," Kurt turned to the rest of the group, "I'll see you guys during the intermission." 

"Oh, by the way, everyone else is out there already," Artie told Kurt, who looked at him confused. 

"Everyone? Who else is here?"

"Glee club, Mr Shue, Mrs Pillsbury, Sue, and Sebastian," Artie listed. "They refused to miss it." Kurt smiled, happy that his friends made the effort.

"We'll see you later, Kurt." Rachel smiled at her friend as she began to wheel Artie out of the room, with the rest following. 

"See ya."

When the 5-minute call went, Kurt was ready to go out. However, when he actually had to go onto the stage he froze. _You can do this_ , he thought. It wasn't until he saw Elliott smile at him and nod that he dared to go out. 

After the music had begun, he sang his first line,

_Everywhere I go..._

Immediately he lost himself in the lyrics and the movements, and was no longer Kurt Hummel, but instead Peter Allen. Before he knew it, the first act was over and he was deafened by the roaring applause that came from the audience. Kurt grinned with the cast members that stood on the stage with him. 

Kurt's friends and family began talking to him all at once during the intermission. He heard overlaps of compliments but he couldn't detect anything specific. 

"One at a time." He chuckled and listened to the admiration that his friends gave him.

One by one they all went back to their seats until it was just Kurt and Elliott. 

"Gotta admit, I'm a little jealous of all the kissing," Elliott admitted, looking shyly at Kurt. 

"Oh yeah? Wait until the second act." Kurt winked at his friend playfully.

"You're great, by the way," Elliott told him, and it was Kurt's turn to blush. 

"I'll see you after the show, El."

"Yeah, you will." Elliott smirked and gave Kurt another hug before leaving.

* * *

The second act was as flawless as the first, and by the end of the show, Kurt saw most of the audience in tears and was close to crying himself.

 _I did it, Mom. I hope I made you proud_ , Kurt thought to himself as he looked up to the ceiling. He knew that she was watching him.

After Kurt had taken his final bow, he bolted to his dressing room. He knew that he had about 10 minutes to recover from the rush before his friends would find him. 

_"Don't look at the note until after you've amazed us all..."_

Kurt grabbed the bunch of flowers that Elliott had given him and fished out the note between two roses.

‘Hey, Kurt, I have a surprise for you. Come find me after the show at the place you first met me, love, Elliott xxx.’

Kurt thought for a minute. Where he had first met Elliott? It was when he auditioned for Kurt's cover band, as Starchild, right? _The audition room!_ Kurt picked up his phone and snuck out of the back door to avoid the crowds of people he could hear outside of his door.

* * *

"TAXI!" Kurt yelled and climbed into one that pulled over for him. He gave the driver directions to the building where he first met Elliott and couldn't contain his excitement when they arrived. 

“Thanks," Kurt said to the driver as he paid them and then rushed inside the building. 

"Hey, El-" Kurt began to greet Elliott but was met with a dark, empty room.

"Where is he? Did I get here before him?" Kurt thought out loud and entered the room to look for any clues. There was nothing in there except a few stray tables and chairs.

"Where I first met him... Met him... Met Elliott- not Starchild! Oh my God, I'm such an idiot!" Kurt continued, as he realised where Elliott was. "I first met him at the diner!" 

Kurt ran out of the isolated building and into the streets. The roads were just as empty as the building, so he had no chance of catching a taxi, and there wasn't a subway station for miles. 

"Well, Hummel, time to get your knees up." Kurt sighed to himself and began running towards the diner. 20 minutes later he was almost there until his phone started ringing. 

"You've got to be kidding." Kurt groaned and pulled out his phone. "Hi, Rachel."

" _Kurt! Where are you?_ " the muffled voice of his friend asked. Kurt swore he heard Sam singing in the background.

“Spotlight, I have to find Elliott. Rachel, I love him," Kurt whispered and he smiled when he heard Rachel's reply.

“ _Then go get him._ " 

"El?" Kurt entered the diner and smiled when he saw the setting. The room was lit with pink fairy lights and cinnamon-scented candles, while the tables were decorated with roses. 

"Hey, Kurt. First of all, I hate you. Your performance made me cry, it was amazing. Secondly, I want to serenade you," Elliott announced, and Kurt laughed at the memory of when he serenaded Elliott. 

"Well, be my guest," Kurt smiled and sat on a chair. 

Elliott gave Kurt a toothy grin and pressed play on his phone. The second the instrumental played, Kurt recognised the song.

 _Come What May_. 

Kurt's eyes teared up at the memory of him and Blaine promising to sing the song to each other at their wedding.

_Never knew I could feel like this_

_Like I've never seen the sky before_

Elliott's voice was soft and rough at the same time, and it made Kurt feel emotions he didn't know existed. 

_Want to vanish inside your kiss_

_Every day I love you more and more_

Kurt's mouth fell open, did Elliott just say he loved him?

_Listen to my heart, can you hear it sings_

_Telling me to give you everything_

Elliott's strong voice filled the entire room, giving Kurt chills.

_Seasons may change_

_Winter to spring_

Elliott walked from the stage to Kurt and pulled him up from his seat and put his hands on his waist. 

_But I love you until the end of time_

_Come what may_

_Come what may_

_I will love you until my dying day_

Kurt took a deep breath and began to sing the next line.

_Suddenly the world seems like such a perfect place_

_Suddenly it moves with such a perfect grace_

Kurt and Elliott sang the next lines together, their voices mixing perfectly. 

S _uddenly my life doesn't seem such a waste_

_It all revolves around you_

Kurt couldn't believe it was happening, he finally had Elliott back.

_And there's no mountain too high_

_No river too wide_

_Sing out this song and I'll be there by your side_

_Storm clouds may gather, and stars may collide_

Elliott sang,

 _But I love you_

and Kurt believed him more than he had ever believed anyone. 

Kurt sang back,

_But I love you_

_Until the end of time_

_Come what may_

_Come what may_

_I will love you until my dying day_

_Oh, come what may_

_Come what may_

_I will love you, suddenly the world seems such a perfect place_

_Come what may_

_Come what may_

_I will love you until my dying day_

They both took deep breaths and laughed together. 

"I mean it, Kurt, I do love you," Elliott repeated, still holding onto Kurt. 

"I love you too." Kurt leaned in and kissed Elliott passionately, never wanting to stop. 

"Against all odds?" Elliott asked, his head resting against Kurt's. 

"Against all odds."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this book and I hoped you enjoyed it!


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